


Cataclysm

by CrystalLifestream (AlleyCatSunflower)



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Drama, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2019-05-17 03:15:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 45,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14824211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlleyCatSunflower/pseuds/CrystalLifestream
Summary: "What do you do when you can't decide whether you should trust someone?" asked Aerith. "When your head says one thing and your gut says something else—which one do you listen to?"Prompto blinked a few times. "Which is saying what?""Almost everything is screaming at me that I shouldn't trust them. But…" Aerith lowered her eyes as if at a loss where to turn them. "I also have that feeling again, and it says Ishould.I don't know what to do.""That feeling's never been wrong before," pointed out Prompto. "I don't know why you're worrying so much about what your head says." Still, he couldn't suppress a twinge of anxiety. Given that Aerith already knew her hunches were almost always right, it was rare that she ever experienced inner conflict on this scale, and that was more than enough cause for concern. Maybe the stakes were higher somehow, like the consequences would be especially severe if she was wrong."I don't really know either," said Aerith. "But everything feels like it's just one discovery away from falling apart, and I don't like that. What if Imakethat discovery? What if we can't stop the invasion?"





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> In which the end of the world as everyone knows it can be traced back to two ex-SOLDIERs' arrival in Insomnia. Realistically, it can be traced back to the advent of magitek, and then to the usage of plasmodia to power it—but the Empire is nothing if not adept at victim-blaming. So we'll go with that instead.
> 
> This is a crossover AU, mostly FFXV-centric, and contains characters and certain story elements from FFVII. It's rated T for now due to swearing, but this is subject to change, as are the characters and pairings.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aerith takes in a couple strays asleep in her flowerbed, and realizes—once one of them awakens powers she never knew she had—that their arrival in her life could well change the course of history.

Even if it had never happened before, Aerith supposed she really shouldn’t be all that surprised to find a couple vagrants asleep in her flowerbed. Rather, she should be more surprised that it had taken this long for anyone to move into the abandoned church.

Insomnia was good at advertising itself to be some sort of utopia compared to country life, but living on the outskirts and walking through the slums, Aerith had seen plenty that didn’t line up with the civilized image of the Crown City. Thanks to her, so had the prince, but Noct had only just come of age. It wasn’t as though he could do anything about the corruption except keep it in mind for whenever he was king, and _that_ wasn’t something he liked to think about.

Of course, less heavily enforced regulations did have their advantages, so it wasn’t all bad. The government hadn’t bothered either fixing this place up or tearing it down, for instance. But the downsides could be deadly. The officials out here tended to accept bribes, and they didn’t care too much if you went missing. Especially if you were an immigrant and/or homeless, like these two.

But as Aerith paced forward cautiously, studying their appearances, she found that on closer examination, they didn’t really look like any street people she’d seen. They seemed about as unfortunate, and they (or at least their clothes) could definitely do with a bath, but something about them felt different even at this distance. Maybe it was because they hadn’t set up camp. They had only one large pack between them, and it lay some distance away, untouched.

Daring to approach further, Aerith skirted around the edge of the flowerbed, scrutinizing the strangers carefully. Both of them appeared to be around her age, give or take a couple years. Still thinking of herself as a girl, it felt wrong to call them  _men_ , and there was something boyish about both their faces. It might have been the fact that both of them were clean-shaven, which meant they’d had access to shaving equipment recently.

One of them had longish black hair, and was sprawled among the flowers in such a way that he seemed to take up much more space than he actually did. Which was saying something, since he was so tall and well-muscled. He was dressed in a tank top, durable trousers, and well-worn combat boots. And they must have been used for combat, too, given that he had a cross-shaped scar on his cheek. His outfit was dusty, but oddly new—far from threadbare, and without too many rips.

The other boy was blond, in a plain formerly-white t-shirt and jeans, as well as the same make of combat boots. Though his clothes were in much the same condition as the other boy’s, his body looked a little bit weaker. Well… maybe a  _lot_  weaker. In fact, he looked distinctly unwell, pale and skinny and lying limp as a corpse. He was still clearly alive, judging by the deep rise and fall of his chest, but Aerith had her doubts as to whether he would ever wake up.

There was nothing else to be done but try.

Aerith cleared her throat uncertainly. Mom had always advised her not to talk to strangers, and this pair was nothing if not  _strange_ , but her intuition had always been uncanny to the point that even Ignis had praised it. Besides, they didn’t appear to have any weapons handy, nor did they look too malicious in sleep.

“Hello…?”

The black-haired boy gave a faint groan, turning over and curling up almost defensively. “Five more minutes, Cindy,” he yawned, lapsing into unintelligible mumbling. But he frowned within the moment, perhaps recognizing that Aerith’s voice was different than the one he had imagined, and opened one eye.

Instantly, they both flew wide—a vivid shade of blue, somewhere between Noct’s and Prompto’s—and he sat up. "O-oh, sorry,” he said, scratching the back of his head, and suppressed another yawn. “Must’ve been dreaming. We’ll get out of your hair.”

Aerith shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. You’re not really in the way. I just… wanted to make sure you two were okay.” She nodded toward the boy’s blond companion. “He doesn’t look so good.”

“Yeah, uh,” said the black-haired one, getting to his feet, with an expression somewhere between sad and uncomfortable. “He’s been kinda… out of commission, lately. Long story.”

“Is that why you’re in the Crown City?” asked Aerith, tilting her head, and the boy nodded. “You’re in the wrong part of town for medical attention. Only a couple clinics around here, and they’re not really the best-equipped.  _But_ , on the plus side, they might treat him even if you two don’t have identification. And they might accept late payment, or other kinds of trades.”

“ _Might_?”

Aerith nodded. “Depends on who you see, and how generous they’re feeling.”

The boy scuffed a foot thoughtfully against a splintering floorboard. “That so. I thought Insomnia was supposed to be, like…”

“Organized?” asked Aerith. “Yeah, they like advertising the middle- and upper-class parts, which  _are_  nice if you can afford them. But lower-class is lower-class no matter where you are, and Insomnia’s no exception.”

Nodding, the boy cast his gaze around as if in search of a change in subject. “Nice place you got here, though.”

Aerith laughed. “Oh, it’s not mine,” she said, placing her hands behind her back. “Just a church on the outskirts. But I  _did_  plant the flowers you decided to sleep in.” She eyed her partially ruined flowerbed. It’d take awhile for them to recover from being crushed like that.

The boy’s eyes widened as he followed her gaze, and he grimaced apologetically. “Sorry about that. I just figured they might help with the smell. I’m Zack, by the way,” he added, extending his hand, and Aerith reached out to shake it. If his physique hadn’t already convinced her he was used to hard labor, his calluses definitely did. “And… that’s Cloud.”

“Cloud?” echoed Aerith, frowning. “Like…”

“Puffs in the sky, yeah,” finished Zack, a bite of impatience in his voice, as though he’d had this conversation many times. “C’mon, half the names in Lucis are just as weird if you un-translate ’em from the ancient language. Like, for example—what’s yours?”

Aerith suppressed a laugh with difficulty. “Aerith.”

“Oh,” said Zack, brought up short as she shattered his assumption. “Okay, fine. Never mind. But King Regis!” he continued, determined to prove his point. “His name is literally ‘King King’! How is that any better than ‘Cloud’?”

The way Zack said ‘half the names in Lucis’ made Aerith think he wasn’t from inside the kingdom, but she chose not to mention it. He didn’t really fit her image of a spy, after all, and it was too early in their acquaintance to ask abrasive and invasive questions like that. “Never said it was,” she said, mustering a small smile. “Now, come on. I’ll take you two to the nearest clinic.”

Zack hesitated for a split second as though meaning to say something, but then nodded. “Thanks, Aerith,” he said, bending to sling one of Cloud’s arms around his neck, and hauled him to his feet. Effortless as he made it seem (though his cargo was admittedly lighter than it should have been), Aerith could not stand idly by, and rushed forward to help support Cloud’s other side.

But as soon as she grasped his arm to steady him, light sparked to life at her fingertips.

Gasping, Aerith snatched back her hand as though she had been burned, though the only sensation she felt was a ticklish tingling. What was  _that_? “Whoa!” exclaimed Zack, almost dropping Cloud, but caught him again the second he started slipping from his grasp. “You didn’t tell me you were the Oracle!”

“I—I’m not!” insisted Aerith, staring at her shaking hands, but Zack was busy looking at Cloud out the corner of his eye. At first, Aerith didn’t understand why, but then she heard a faint moan, and saw him stir faintly.

Zack turned to face Aerith, bright eyes sharpening. “Do it again,” he ordered, his demeanor taking such an abrupt turn for the authoritative that Aerith could only blink at him. He seemed to realize how sudden his transition was, however, because his expression immediately softened again. “Please.”

But Aerith couldn’t move. “Does he have… the plague?” she asked, eyeing them both anxiously. As a relatively enclosed space, the capital was off-limits to everyone with plague symptoms, to prevent it from spreading through the entire city. And as much as Aerith hated the immigration policies, she had to admit they were effective. To her knowledge, there had never been a single case of plague in Insomnia.

Except for Cloud, now.

“I don’t know,” said Zack. “But if he does…” He trailed off, biting his lip as he glanced aside, then looked back into Aerith’s eyes earnestly. “ _Please_ , Aerith. I’ll do anything. He hasn’t surfaced in years.”

_Years_? Aerith looked at Cloud with new eyes; no one deserved to spend so much of their life unconscious. Her sympathetic feet moved before she gave the order, and she approached tentatively, reaching toward him once more. If her powers were anything like the Oracle’s, maybe she could help him after all.

She flinched as the light glowed softly back into existence with their proximity, but persisted this time, and Cloud stirred more decisively. And then, quite suddenly, the light vanished, and his eyes flew open.

“Sephiroth!” he gasped, twitching violently, and clutched at his chest in visceral desperation. “Zack, I—I’m so sorry! I couldn’t sav—” A coughing fit cut him off, and he retched, but nothing came of it.

Heedless of his friend’s disorientation, Zack pulled Cloud into a tight hug. Aerith, meanwhile, frowned in confusion—grateful, despite herself, to have been given something to think about that didn’t involve her heretofore unseen magical abilities.

_Sephiroth_? As in, the infamous imperial soldier, possessed of inhuman strength? Curiouser and curiouser. If not for Aerith’s feeling that Zack and Cloud weren’t from Lucis, she’d guess them to be refugees from one of the several villages he had helped lay to waste. Except that Sephiroth had met his end almost three years ago, if the reports were to be believed.

Though, these two certainly did seem traumatized enough…

There was no trace of Zack’s sudden turn for the commanding amid his happy tears. It had probably been out of worry, the way Gladio sometimes got around Noct, but… it had felt almost like he was  _used_ to giving those kinds of orders. “It’s okay,” whispered Zack, hugging Cloud more tightly still, and Cloud rested a feeble hand on his upper arm by way of reciprocation. “We’re safe now, in the Crown City. You don’t have to worry about a thing.”

It occurred to Aerith that she was witnessing what must be an incredibly touching moment, but lacked any of the context required to make it meaningful. Still, she supposed she was glad to have helped reunite a pair of friends. Or more than that, she thought, observing the tear or two streaking down Zack’s face, trailing into the corners of his smile. She wasn’t one to judge.

When their embrace showed no sign of letting up, Aerith cleared her throat pointedly. Far be it from her to interrupt, especially since it kept them from reminding her that she was apparently magical, but her increasing number of questions demanded answers. “So,” she began, as Zack finally let Cloud go. “Are you two refugees, or something?”

“Y-yeah,” said Zack, visibly uncomfortable, and ran a hand through his hair. “You could say that.”

“I could also say that  _you_  said you’d do anything if I helped wake up your boyfriend,” said Aerith, putting her hands on her hips. (Cloud looked irked at first, but then he looked sick, and said nothing.) “Come on, I want to know your story. I’ll even throw some food and rest into the bargain, if you come home with me.”

Aerith didn’t make a habit of inviting strangers into her private abode, but she wasn’t sensing any malice from these two. Call it a hunch, but one of them looked like he’d barely be able to walk, and the other of them had gotten childishly indignant over naming conventions.  _And_  had immediately offered to get out of her way upon waking up.

Besides, the house was miraculously free. Mom was spending the afternoon downtown, so she’d be out of danger if things went south. Prompto would be coming over for the day as soon as he finished his chores, and he could lend a hand if anyone gave her any trouble. And if things went  _really_ wrong, Aerith had friends in high places. Still, she preferred not to resort to dragging the prince into this.

Letting out a long breath, Zack glanced over at Cloud. “What do you think?”

“Up to you.”

Zack heaved an exaggerated sigh, but didn’t look too surprised. “And here I was, looking forward to having you make some of the decisions again,” he said, shaking his head, and looked back up at Aerith. “All right, it’s a deal. I’m a man of my word. But if you wanna know  _everything_ ,” he added, eyes sparkling with sudden mischief, “I’m gonna have to ask just one more favor.”

Aerith narrowed her eyes. “What favor?”

Zack grinned, and Cloud managed an eyeroll, and that was when Aerith knew that cultivating their acquaintances would be a terrible—wonderful—mistake. “How about one date?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This idea, which I'm sure is hardly unique, was born from too much chocolate and too little sleep. As such, you should definitely consider this story a rough draft, and you should definitely _not_ expect any kind of consistent update schedule.
> 
> This might not be as refined as most of my work and certainly isn't up to my usual standards—I'll tell you up front that I'm basically making this up as I go along—but I'm only doing it for characterization/dynamic experimentation and stress relief anyway. (I have extremely vague ideas about which pairings I'll be leading into, but I don't know how I'll get there, so I'm not tagging them yet.) Hope you enjoy!


	2. New Arrivals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Prompto goes to Aerith's house and finds two very strange strangers there.

_That_ tone of voice was never a good sign in this part of town.

Stopping short, Prompto yanked out his earbuds one at a time to listen more carefully. Outskirts or not, Aerith's front yard in broad daylight was one of the least likely settings he would've thought anyone would bother sounding so secretive. But apparently, these two strangers didn't get the memo.

Granted, they didn't exactly look like your typical ne'er-do-wells. Even though one of them was tall and muscular, and had a scar on his cheek—not as impressive as Gladio’s, but still proof that he’d been in a tussle or two—he didn't look much older than Prompto. Besides that, his posture was literally upstanding despite the full-to-bursting knapsack on his back, and what Prompto could see of his face looked open and honest. In short, he looked nothing like the sketchier individuals in the slums.

But it was, oddly, the less imposing one of the two that really caught Prompto's attention. He was pale-skinned, blond-haired, and scrawny, and the more Prompto looked at him, the more similarities to himself he saw. Except his secret twin was lucky enough not to have inherited these goddamn freckles. “Hold on,” he was saying. “Zack, do you seriously think the king’s gonna grant  _us_  an audience?”

“Don’t you think he’s gonna wanna hear what we have to say?”

“I think  _I_ wanna go home.”

“Look, Cloud," snapped Zack, and Prompto almost flinched on Cloud's behalf. (He looked too sullen and exhausted to do it himself.) "I get it. Really, I do. But you gotta understand, there's no such thing as 'home' anymore." He crossed his arms, taking a deep breath to calm himself, and opened his mouth to continue—but then he caught sight of Prompto, and Cloud traced his gaze.

There was an extremely awkward silence as they all stared one another down.

“H-hey there,” greeted Prompto, feeling the heat of embarrassment rise to his face. “Sorry for interrupting? I just have to get inside, and then you two can…"

Zack shook his head. “It's no problem,” he said, glancing between Prompto and the door almost nervously. In a way, his discomfort made Prompto feel a little bit better about his intrusion. “Is this  _your_  house? Aerith invited us over, so I assumed…”

This time Zack was the one to trail off, and Prompto's eyes widened in understanding. Aerith did have a habit of making friends in odd places, though where she'd found these two, he had no idea. "Any friends of Aerith's are friends of mine," he said, swinging the gate open, and closed it behind him. "I'm Prompto. Her… brother, I guess you could say."

He extended his hand, and Zack took it. “Zack,” he said, giving it a single firm shake, and let go. “And this is—”

“Cloud,” interrupted Cloud, hugging his arms to himself in an assertion that he would _not_ be shaking hands, and nodded once instead. He seemed irritated, almost threatened, more like a storm cloud than the fluffy white that initially came to mind. But the intimidation was offset by the trouble Cloud had meeting Prompto's eyes. The problem was that Prompto tended to have the same issue, so that he wasn't sure whether either of them was actually looking at the other or not.

Better to just cut this short. "Nice to meet you," said Prompto, looking back at Zack again to find a small frown on his face as he glanced between the two. (Good; so Prompto wasn't just imagining their similarities.) "A-anyway, I'm gonna be inside," he added, waving with some bravado and proceeding the rest of the way down the garden path. "You two just, uh… carry on?"

As soon as Prompto closed the door behind him, Pryna rushed up to greet him, wagging her tail wildly. Setting down his bag by the door, Prompto crouched to give her some attention, murmuring his usual sweet nothings. Here was another stray the Gainsboroughs had taken in, besides him. She must be getting on in years, by now, but she never acted any older. In a way, Prompto hadn't changed much, either.

"There you are," remarked Aerith, sitting at the table some distance away. She was reading an annotated version of  _Cosmogony_ with a half-eaten peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich in hand, and three other places set beside her.

“Hey, Aerith,” said Prompto, straightening up, and approached. “Ran into a couple guys out there. New friends of yours?”

“You could say that,” said Aerith, as Prompto slid into the chair next to her. “I found them asleep in the church. They crushed some of my flowers, so I'll get them to help out around the house, or something.” She paused. "I don't think they know that yet, though."

"Do you know anything about them?" asked Prompto, frowning. "Like, where they came from, or why they're so hard up?"

“They’re going to tell me their story, once they’re done catching up,” said Aerith, turning a page absentmindedly. “Cloud’s been asleep for three years, you know. Zack's telling him everything he missed."

“ _What_?” Prompto privately erased any mental notes he’d made on Cloud’s moodiness. He’d probably be more than a little pissed off if something like that happened to him, too. “What happened?”

“I don’t know yet,” said Aerith. “That’s part of what they’re going to tell me.”

Prompto sighed. Normal people might be a little more cautious about inviting over total strangers, no matter how compelling their circumstances might have been, but Aerith tended to be _stubbornly_ sympathetic. And, even if her reasoning tended to be unconventional—which usually drove Ignis crazy—she always had her reasons.

Besides, she had a good head on her shoulders, and that canniness coexisted well with her kindness. She'd never been wrong about anyone yet. Hell, she'd been the one to tell Prompto he should try befriending Noct all those years ago, and look where they were now. And that reminded him…

“They did mention something about talking to His Majesty," said Prompto. "Zack seemed to think they had some kind of information that might be useful.”

Aerith gave a thoughtful hum, but said nothing, and lapsed back into reading. Prompto, however, couldn't just let the conversation drop. This kind of behavior was vague, even for Aerith. “ _Cosmogony_ , huh?” he asked, scooting his chair closer to her, and trying to sneak a peek at the pages to see what she was studying so carefully. “Been awhile since you looked at that. What's the occasion?”

“Something happened when I touched Cloud," said Aerith. When Prompto could say nothing, she looked up at his expression and explained, a bite of impatience in her voice, “I was trying to help Zack pick him up.”

“Zack doesn’t look like he’d need help picking anyone up.” Except maybe Gladio, but that was beside the point.

“It was a reflex,” said Aerith evasively, turning another page. “Anyway, I think Cloud had the plague.”

Prompto almost choked on his first bite of sandwich. “ _Shit_ , Aerith!” he exclaimed, staring at her. 'Ill-advised' was an understatement; for the first time, he understood Ignis's exasperation. “And you invited him to your house?!”

Aerith set down her book briefly. “I know it sounds crazy, but I… I think I cured him,” she said, her eyes troubled. “When I touched him, there was this light. And then he woke up. So now I’m reading about the Oracle’s powers, to see if there's some kind of connection.” Prompto opened his mouth to point out that he was pretty sure there couldn't be more than one Oracle, but the door opened again to admit Zack and Cloud.

Trotting forward, Pryna greeted each of them politely in turn. After setting down his own knapsack, Zack looked delighted and tousled her fur affectionately, but Cloud flattened himself against the wall. “Hey, Aerith,” said Zack, looking up at her as Pryna retreated. “I hate to ask another favor after everything you've done for us, but… d'you mind if I maybe hit the showers real quick?”

" _Please_ do," said Aerith, and Prompto suppressed a smile at her backhanded insult as Zack headed straight for the bathroom. Even though Prompto hadn't gotten too close, judging by how dusty they looked, they probably didn't smell too great. “Cloud, you should too. Once you have some food. I made you half a serving for starters, so you don’t eat too much too fast and get sick.”

“Thanks,” said Cloud, slumping into the chair across from Prompto, and picked up his half-a-sandwich listlessly.

The three of them finished their lunches in silence, but for the insistent metallic sound of that squeaky old shower. Through it, Prompto kept sneaking glances at Cloud, trying to pinpoint the differences between them. Cloud didn't have freckles, and his hairstyling routine was different—or perhaps simply neglected, if he'd been asleep for three years. Besides that, Prompto might have been a little older, and a little taller.

“What are you looking at?” asked Cloud, glowering, but he seemed much more uneasy than actually annoyed. Like he was snapping out of self-defense. Prompto's parents used to get like that, sometimes, back when they interacted with him at all. Aerith's folks had always done a better job of raising him. Ironically, it might have been because he didn't live with them. (But then, if he was being honest, he may as well not live with his own parents either.)

“What do you think?” asked Aerith, bringing Prompto back to the present. “You two look alike.”

A question appeared on Prompto's tongue, and he could not swallow it in time. "H-hey, uh, Cloud. I know this is a weird question, but… do you happen to have a barcode on your wrist?"

Rather than respond, Cloud only frowned slightly and turned his wrists over to show them. Both sides. No barcodes.

"Right," mumbled Prompto, heart sinking, and lowered his gaze to his empty plate. "Of course not. That'd just be weird." He hadn't known how high he had gotten his hopes up until that moment. Honestly, they were probably just your standard pair of blue-eyed blond guys. Why would he think there was any more to it than that?

Aerith shot Prompto a reproachful glance in his peripheral vision. She'd always admired his barcode, for some reason. Back when they were kids, she used to think it was like a personalized birthmark, and eagerly awaited the day she'd grow a symbol herself. To the point that she'd gotten a tattoo for her eighteenth birthday—just a small, hollow circle on the nape of her neck.

When Prompto had asked her what it meant, her answer was everything. Their star. Eternity. Prompto hadn't assigned a meaning to his own barcode, so he'd gotten a couple more _voluntary_ tattoos for his own eighteenth birthday a little over half a year later. Barbed wire, and the ancient symbol of Solheim. Captivity, and the hope of achieving something greater than himself.

Only as the bathroom door opened did Prompto realize that the water had shut off at some point, and jumped. He didn't usually let himself get this lost in thought around strangers, but then, he also didn't usually find strangers who resembled him so strongly.

"Your turn, Cloud," said Zack.

“Thanks,” mumbled Cloud, and shuffled off to the bathroom. As he did so, Zack went for the knapsack, and Prompto rolled his eyes as he realized he was carrying his shirt instead of wearing it. Even Gladio wasn’t normally this much of a showoff, and his physique was arguably even more impressive than Zack's.

Straightening up again, Zack cleared his throat to call attention to himself, but Aerith didn't so much as look up. Not even when his eyes practically burned into her. “Now, Aerith, about that date…"

Prompto’s jaw dropped—who said anything about  _dates_?!—but Aerith only sighed, finally closing her book. Apparently, she wasn't as hot on the idea as Zack. “You wouldn’t have been sleeping in an abandoned church if you had any money.”

“Hey, I have  _some_ money,” protested Zack, crossing his arms. “Just not enough to actually stay anywhere.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Besides, dates don't have to involve money,” continued Zack, oblivious to her skeptical tone, or perhaps simply ignoring it. “We could just hang out in your church and get to know each other. And, uh, just park Cloud outside, or… something." His voice trailed off awkwardly, and Prompto smiled despite himself. Even with a body like that, maybe he wasn't quite as confident as he appeared.

"That might've worked when he was still asleep," said Aerith, tilting her head. "But we should talk about this later, because we're not going anywhere till I hear your story anyway." She glanced over at the bathroom as the water shuddered back on again with its usual metallic drone. "And I don't think Cloud will be able to contribute much, so you might as well start without him."

Zack took a deep breath. "All right, all right," he said, spinning Cloud's chair around to sit on it backwards. "Gimme a sec to eat, and then I'll talk. Those are two of the things I do best." He picked up the last remaining sandwich. "In the meantime, tell me—what do you want to know first?"


	3. Exposition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Zack delivers a history lesson, and Cloud takes the longest shower ever.

It took Zack all of one minute to wolf down his sandwich before his story began. "So you wanna know where we’re from. Well, I'll tell you. We were— _were_ , as in, past tense, just so there are no misunderstandings—in the Niflheim Army.”

Aerith and Prompto exchanged a glance. Neither of them was especially surprised; there were only so many places outside of Lucis they could have come from. "But we’re _kinda_ enemies of the state at the moment. You know, wanted dead or alive, the whole nine yards. So… you know what they say about enemies and enemies and friends."

Prompto raised his eyebrows. "What did you do?”

"I guess we just know too much,” said Zack, scratching his head. “And I never thought I’d say that about myself, since I left home right after middle school. I'd always had big dreams of becoming a hero, so I ran away to join SOLDIER.”

"You mean you _became_ a soldier?” asked Aerith.

"No, like, the group is called SOLDIER," said Zack. "All caps.”

"What’s it stand for?” asked Prompto, frowning in confusion.

"What do you mean, what’s it stand for?”

"SOLDIER," said Prompto. "If it’s all caps, it must stand for something, right?”

"Look, I don’t know,” said Zack, rubbing his forehead. “The _point_ is, I joined SOLDIER. It's a special division of the Niflheim Army that gives us a special shot, and then we get, uh, superhuman powers and stuff.”

"Seriously?” asked Prompto. “Like what?”

"Like the ability to take a lot of bullets and not die,” said Zack. “Not that I’ve put that to the test. And we get an endurance boost, immune system boost, et cetera. Only downside is, it involves the same plasmodia that’s causing the plague.”

Aerith leaned away from Zack automatically, and Prompto scooted his chair as far away from Zack as possible—at least until it hit the rug behind him and almost tipped over backwards. “Dude, not cool!” he yelped, leaning forward again frantically to balance himself out. “Think you could’ve told us that a little earlier?!”

"It’s not contagious!" exclaimed Zack, raising his voice slightly over Prompto’s protests. “They run a lot of tests to make sure the plasmodia’s not gonna take us over, and we’re not gonna show any symptoms, and all this other stuff. Cloud failed the tests, so he had to become a normal infantryman and pray he didn’t die on the frontlines.” He glanced aside. “We didn’t meet for… some time. And it was only ’cause he was stationed in Midgar _with_ SOLDIER that I met him at all.”

"SOLDIER and soldiers,” said Aerith, as Prompto sheepishly scooted his chair forward again. “They’re different? Besides the shots?”

"Well, when you put it like that, it doesn’t make any sense,” said Zack. “But yeah. There are three classes of SOLDIER—the all-caps one.” He counted off on his fingers. “Third, Second, and First. All SOLDIERs have the same abilities, so ranking has nothing to do with what you _can_ do, and more what you _do_ do. You start out a Third, and if you get recognized, you can get promoted.”

“Huh," remarked Prompto.

“That means there are a lot of Thirds, not so many Seconds, and only a few Firsts,” said Zack. “But Sephiroth was a First. My mentor, Angeal, was another. And then there was Genesis.” He hesitated. “There was also Ravus, but he got promoted all the way out of SOLDIER to Commander of the Niflheim Army, so he doesn’t count.” Zack looked between Prompto and Aerith. “Anyway, do either of you know anything about the Genesis War?”

Aerith exchanged a glance with Prompto. "Not really?"

“Yeah, I’m not surprised,” said Zack. “The imperial government’s done everything in their power to keep that under wraps. But that’s the reason why the Empire randomly stopped attacking Lucis a few years back.” He traced restless circles on the table. “Genesis deserted and took, like, half the guys in SOLDIER with him. Then he turned around and attacked Niflheim with them. Technically, he was a one-man army, because he turned his followers into copies of himself.”

“Turning them into _copies_?” exclaimed Prompto. “What? Why?”

“Yeah, uh,” said Zack, scratching his head. “It was a revenge thing. See, he and Angeal and Sephiroth were all born from some crazy science project that was supposed to give humans daemonic abilities from birth—but without taking away their sanity or free will, like the MTs.” He pursed his lips. “You know anything about the Calamity?”

“The Calamity from the Skies?” asked Aerith, and Zack nodded. “It’s in _Cosmogony_ ,” she added to Prompto, when he looked confused. “It either refers to the meteor or something that came with it. There's some debate among the interpretations."

“Yeah, well, I can confirm it means something that came with it,” said Zack. “Imperial scientists found some sort of monster when they were poking around the Disc of Cauthess about fifty years ago. Her codename’s Jenova, but I’ve also heard her called the Mother of Daemons. And they decided to use _her_ cells in the experiments that created Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth. Which… didn’t turn out too well.”

“What happened?” asked Aerith.

“Degradation happened,” said Zack. “As it turns out, daemon and human genetics don’t mix—surprise, surprise. Genesis figured out his cellular structure was unraveling, or changing, or something like that. Hair turning gray, skin cracking, a wing growing out of his shoulder. You know.”

“He grew wings?” asked Prompto, wide-eyed.

“ _One_ wing."

Prompto frowned. “Isn’t that… you know… kinda useless?”

“You’d think,” said Zack, shaking his head. “But no. He could still fly. Somehow.”

“Weird.”

“No argument here,” agreed Zack. “Anyway, Genesis joined up with one of the scientists to try and fix himself, or at least get even. Angeal followed them, since he was born from the same branch of the project, but his heart wasn't in it. Even with all the sadness and anger he must have felt, betrayal went against his personal code of honor."

“I guess there aren’t too many support groups for people like that, huh,” said Prompto.

Zack gave a somewhat awkward smile, but seemed grateful for the quip. “Angeal made a few copies, himself, but they were mostly daemons instead of just clones. And even though he was fine, the copies all degraded. Or… most of them, anyway." He paused thoughtfully. "If I hadn't known he’d died, I could’ve sworn the human one we ran into years later was the real thing." 

"Wait, he died?" asked Prompto, brought up short.

"I… yeah," said Zack, fingers tracing his scar absentmindedly. “Angeal lost the will to live, I think, once he figured out what he really was. Absorbed a lot of daemons and then mutated into one himself. I had to stop him.”

“You mean…” began Prompto, his voice hushed.

Zack nodded, and his voice was quiet as he said, “I killed him.”

Prompto froze, and Aerith shivered. For all the brawls they'd witnessed, neither of them had spoken to anyone who'd ended a life before. In hindsight, Zack's status as a soldier meant he had blood on his hands by default, but it was another matter to hear details about the death of someone specific.

But, though Zack spoke as though this happened long ago, his eyes and tone were both hollow enough that his mentor's death clearly still affected him on a deep level. Killing Angeal must have been an act of self-defense and/or mercy. And Aerith could tell Prompto had come to the same conclusion, from the beginnings of sympathy dawning on his face.

“Wh-what about Sephiroth?” asked Aerith, longing to change the subject.

Zack grimaced. Evidently,  _he_ wasn't any more pleasant a topic to deal with. (Not that Aerith was surprised, given Cloud's initial outburst.) “I don’t know the details, but he was born from a different branch of the project," said Zack. "He had superhuman strength from the beginning, and he never had to deal with the degradation."

“But… I heard he died anyway,” said Prompto tentatively. “A few years ago.”

Zack let out a long breath. “What did you hear?”

Prompto and Aerith exchanged a glance. “Nobody in Lucis knows what really happened,” said Aerith. “But Lucian forces were blamed for an attack on some imperial village. I think Sephiroth was supposed to have died defending it.”

“There’s been fighting off-and-on for longer than our generation has been alive, so most of us have kinda lost track of what's going on with the war,” said Prompto. “Especially since Insomnia’s gotten pretty isolated from the rest of the kingdom. But none of us heard a word about invading Niflheim, and the government isn’t _that_ secretive.”

“His Majesty denied everything,” said Aerith. “Most of us believe him. If Lucis was really responsible, _everyone_ would want to get the credit for killing Sephiroth.”

Zack let out a humorless chuckle. “Yeah, well, that honor goes to Cloud.”

Prompto and Aerith stared at Zack incredulously, the former openmouthed. _Cloud?_ As in, the sickly youth currently taking the world’s longest shower? “Seriously?” asked Prompto, his voice strangled as he gave voice to Aerith’s thoughts. “He looks like he’s my age!”

“How old are you?”

“Twenty next week.”

“He turned nineteen a few months ago,” said Zack. “Not that he was awake to celebrate. And I still feel like _I_ should be nineteen.” He sighed, fidgeting with one of his belt loops. “Only woke up a year ago, myself. Never got used to being twenty, let alone twenty-one.”

“At least you could drown your sorrows legally once you came to,” said Prompto uncertainly.

“If I had an ID that wouldn’t get me killed, maybe,” muttered Zack, pulling a face.

“Well, you could always make Aerith buy you a drink on your date."

Aerith shot Prompto a Look, but it was too late. Blinking in surprise, Zack turned to give her his full attention. “You’re twenty?”

“Yeah,” she said, crossing her arms. “But I don’t drink, or buy _other people_ drinks." She scowled at Prompto in pointed playfulness, and he gave an unrepentant shrug in response. He'd off-and-on tried to convince her more than a few times since February, making up increasingly more ridiculous excuses. "And you’ve still got a story to finish.”

A shadow fell across Zack’s face. That had been no meaningless tangent; he was actively avoiding talking about this. “Fine,” he said, gripping the back of the chair. “We were on a mission to a facility in Nibel, where the scientists kept Jenova's body. Our job was to deal with a plasmodia leak, since SOLDIERs are supposed to be immune.”

“Even Cloud?” asked Prompto, frowning. "I thought you said he was just a normal guy."

"He was," said Zack. "But Nibel was his hometown, so he requested to come along as backup. Even though he couldn't go inside the facility.” He shook his head. “Anyway, Sephiroth and I fixed the leak, but then Genesis showed up and explained that his life was a lie. And Sephiroth… didn’t take it well.” Aerith glanced over at Prompto to find him holding his breath, hanging on Zack's every word. “He locked himself in the archives. Researched the experiments that created him for a straight week. And then he burned the village to the ground.”

“ _What_?” interjected Prompto.

“I don’t know, man,” said Zack, anguished. “I wish I did. Sephiroth had been considering turning against Niflheim for some time—didn’t make much of a secret of that—but I never thought he’d kill that many innocent people. I think I saw Cloud’s mom, and… I _know_ I saw the girl he liked.” He held his head in both hands. “Genesis called Sephiroth a perfect monster. Guess he was right.”

“No offense, but he’s always looked like a perfect monster to us,” said Prompto, shifting in place uncomfortably as though hoping to avoid causing offense. “We’ve been on the receiving end of that sword since he picked it up. Pretty sure a lot of people in Lucis have lost loved ones thanks to him.”

Zack shook his head. “To put it bluntly, killing was just Sephiroth's job. I saw the way he fought firsthand, and it was as cold and distant as the rest of his personality. Not that I'm trying to make excuses, but whatever you’ve heard about him, he didn’t make a habit of attacking anyone who didn’t get in the Empire’s way.” He swallowed. “But Nibel was… different. _P_ _ersonal_. I'd never seen that side of him before."

Prompto narrowed his eyes, but thankfully said nothing. They'd have to agree to disagree. "You stopped him?" asked Aerith.

"I tried," said Zack. "I followed Sephiroth back into the facility to confront him, but… whatever you’ve heard about his strength? _That’s_ true. He kicked my ass so I could barely move. And Cloud was just—just a normal sixteen-year-old kid, no special powers or anything." His voice broke. "But he took my sword and went after him. Stabbed him, I think, but it wasn’t enough. Sephiroth came back for revenge."

"But he didn't get it," said Prompto. "Cloud killed him, right? You said Cloud killed him."

He sounded like he was begging for a happily-ever-after, but this was no fairy tale. Zack's expression darkened. "I—I didn’t see what happened. Cloud came back alone. Bleeding all over the place, but Sephiroth didn't come back again.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “I passed out. Thought we were both gonna die, but… I was okay with that, if we'd managed to avenge everyone."

“Who saved you?” asked Aerith.

“Hojo,” said Zack, bitterly, and opened his eyes again. “Another of the Empire's trademark mad scientists. He kept us under and did some _experiments_. I don’t know what he did to us, and I don’t want to know. I probably wouldn’t get it even if someone told me. But I think it involved the plasmodia, because Cloud got so sick he couldn’t move.”

“So that's where the plague came from," remarked Aerith.

Zack gave a distracted nod. "Speaking of which, any idea how you managed to—?"

"Not yet," said Aerith, cutting him off. Having unknown powers still freaked her out, and she'd rather not talk about them until she had at least gotten used to their existence. "Continue."

"If you insist," said Zack, heaving an exaggerated sigh. "Anyway, I managed to wake up after a couple years. Maybe they just forgot to dose me up that day, or something, but I had a vision of Angeal. Then I broke out, grabbed Cloud, and hauled both our asses.” He crossed his arms atop the back of the chair and leaned against them in a gesture of clear exhaustion. “The two of us have been on the run ever since.”

“Wow,” said Prompto, sounding awestruck. Aerith suppressed a smile, knowing exactly which of his favorite comics he was thinking about. “How’d you guys even make it to Lucis?”

Zack shrugged. “Got some help from a few agents who were originally supposed to track us down.”

“They turned against the Empire?” asked Aerith.

“You never really know with the Turks," said Zack. "I’m just happy they decided not to kill us. One of them gave me her motorcycle and some intel for the king, and their leader paid off some mercenary to get us safely to Lucis. And then turned around and hooked her up with a position as commodore for her trouble.”

“But you woke up a year ago,” said Aerith. “Did it really take a year for you to get here?”

“Well, I did have to put Genesis out of his misery first,” said Zack. “If he was just causing trouble for the Empire, I’d have let him live, but… he was convinced that Cloud's cells could cure him, or something. Kept attacking us. I was kinda sorry to do it, since eliminating Genesis meant Niflheim could focus on Lucis again, but I didn’t have much of a choice.”

"You don't sound too enthusiastic about the war reigniting," observed Aerith. Zack seemed awfully pacifistic for a soldier. Er, SOLDIER. (They sounded the same in Aerith's head.)

"How can I be?" flared up Zack, vehemently indignant. "I've seen firsthand that Niflheim is _seriously_  fucked up—'scuse my language. I'm not too excited about the Empire ruling the world, especially if it means they're gonna take the soul of our star and use it in some kind of twisted experiment."

Something seemed to click in Prompto's mind, and he leaned forward, his countenance equal parts cautious and curious. "You… said you had information for His Majesty.”

“Yeah,” said Zack. “Classified. The guy who runs Hammerhead said he used to know the king, but the most he could do was get his granddaughter to smuggle me and Cloud into the Crown City. Said we’d be on our own after that." Prompto's only response was a thoughtful hum, and Aerith kept quiet. Noct was _his_ best friend, so it was more his call than hers whether or not they helped Zack and Cloud out.

There was a pause, which ultimately became a proper silence once the sound of the water finally shut off. Aerith might be annoyed at how much water Cloud had probably wasted if she hadn’t known that this was his first conscious shower in years.

“Well, you’re not on your own anymore,” said Prompto finally, a distinct and unusual note of pride in his voice, and he looked up at Zack again with clear eyes. “You happen to be talking to the prince’s best friend.”

Zack stared at him. “You’re _joking_.”

“Nope,” said Prompto, grinning at Zack’s comical shock, and Aerith smiled. “Dead serious. The two of us have known Noct since we were kids.” 

Zack mouthed the words ‘holy shit’, but did not speak them aloud. “ _Cloud_!” he exclaimed instead, jumping to his feet just as the bathroom door opened, and Cloud swayed backwards as if in response to the force of Zack's voice. “These people know the king!”

Cloud held onto the doorframe for support, wide-eyed and confused. “They… what?”

"W-well, we know the _prince_ ,” said Prompto, looking between Zack and Cloud uncertainly, and Aerith nodded to corroborate. “We’ve never actually had an audience with His Majesty. So… I don't know for sure if we can actually get you into the Citadel or not.”

"A lead is a lead is a lead,” said Zack, dismissive of all difficulty, and started pacing as Cloud slunk around the room to sit in the last chair. “Can you at least see what you can do? Pretty please with whipped cream, sprinkles, and a cherry on top?" Aerith couldn't help but giggle at his phrasing. He may be a wanted criminal, but he acted more like a puppy than a battle-hardened warrior.

"I mean… I’ll text Noct,” said Prompto, somewhere between amused and alarmed, and took out his phone. “But just as a heads-up, he and the guys'll probably wanna meet you two first. Just to get a feel for who you are, and to make sure whatever you have to say is important enough for an audience.” Aerith tried to sneak a glance at his screen as he started typing; the Six only knew where he'd begin. "They'll be able to give you a better recommendation than us."

"Thanks a million, Prompto,” said Zack, his face lighting up with hope, and even Cloud smiled wearily. Aerith’s grin widened as well. She’d always suspected these two might have an interesting story. But she'd never anticipated that she might get to play a part in its continuation.


	4. Questions, Comments, Concerns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Prompto tells a lie, and Zack tells a few parts of the truth.

> **[11:41] Prompto:** hey, aerith wants you guys to meet her new bf asap  
>  **[11:41] Gladio:** Bf as in boyfriend?????  
>  **[11:41] Prompto:** wow that was fast. yeah  
>  **[11:42] Gladio:** Noct says since when does aerith have a bf  
>  **[11:42] Prompto:** since today i guess? i just met him, he's cool  
>  **[11:44] Iggy:** Any word on why?  
>  **[11:44] Prompto:** idk maybe they're in love??  
>  **[11:44] Iggy:** I meant why she wants us to meet him, specifically.  
>  **[11:44] Iggy:** Was this her idea, or her new beau's?  
>  **[11:45] Iggy:** Some of her past admirers only asked her out in the hopes of meeting His Highness.  
>  **[11:45] Gladio:** Give her some credit for once iggy **  
> ** **[11:45] Gladio:**  You know shes seen right through them everytime  
>  **[11:45] Gladio:** Didnt she kick one of them down some stairs  
>  **[11:46] Iggy:** Fair point. I withdraw the question. **  
> ** **[11:46] Prompto:**  yeah this is just important to her, that's all.  
>  **[11:47] Prompto:** can we go out for dinner or something??  
>  **[11:47] Prompto:** been awhile since we've all hung out together  
>  **[11:48] Gladio:** Noct says sure  
>  **[11:48] Gladio:** So he can ask what the guy sees in her  
>  **[11:48] Prompto:** rude, noct.  
>  **[11:49] Noct:** I'm joking. Yeah dinner sounds good.  
>  **[11:50] Iggy:** I suppose I'll make reservations, then.  
>  **[11:50] Prompto:** he's got a friend  
>  **[11:50] Prompto:** by the way  
>  **[11:50] Prompto:** who looks a lot like me  
>  **[11:50] Prompto:** so there'll actually be 7 of us  
>  **[11:50] Noct:** Wait what **  
> ** **[11:51] Noct:**  ???  
>  **[11:53] Prompto:** gtg sorry  
>  **[11:55] Iggy:** Six o'clock at Ifrit's. I hope they're hungry.

Six o'clock, sharper than Ignis's blades—or his tone of voice, whenever he got suspicious—and there was still no sign of them. Prompto's eyes darted nervously up and down the string of messages, just to make sure he hadn't missed anything. Was he at the wrong place? Did he have the wrong time? Had it been wrong to lie?

Especially since Aerith had no idea what Prompto had told the others.

Granted, it wasn't totally unbelievable. She'd dressed up a little for her date, after all, what with those silver bangles. And, pretty as she always was, she looked loveliest in her favorite pink dress. Not to mention, Zack had bought her a matching hair ribbon, the only thing he could afford during their shopping expedition. (He hadn't been kidding about being broke.)  


Perhaps a more considerate or conventional girl might have dressed down a little to match her date, but Aerith had always done as she pleased. If she wanted to wear a dress when her date was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, she would. But then, Prompto figured she'd earned the right. Zack may have bought her a ribbon, but she'd bought _him_  his entire ensemble.

Really, they'd just needed to get him something to wear while they washed his and Cloud's clothes. There wasn't much of a need for finery, so Zack's new outfit was as simple as the one he'd been wearing, only cleaner. Probably. One could never be sure about anything in Wall Market, but they didn't exactly have the time or budget to go elsewhere.

At least it had been a relatively short trip, since they didn't have to buy Cloud anything. Prompto always brought a change of clothes to Aerith's house in case he decided to stay the night. Of course, loaning it to Cloud didn't help the resemblance issue any, but hey, cleanliness was next to godliness. And anyone who could kill _Sephiroth_ was definitely something like a god.

Not that they had talked about that. Or anything, really. Cloud had barely strung two words together all day, and Zack had spent enough of it snoring on the couch that there hadn't been anyone to make up the difference.

Prompto supposed it was no real surprise Cloud would be so lost in thought, now that Zack had caught him up to speed.  He couldn't even imagine waking up three years after a near-death experience in the midst of unfamiliar surroundings, let alone  _not_ immediately losing his shit. It was frankly a miracle that Cloud was sane right now, even if he had gone mute, and that commanded respect.

They still didn't really have a plan beyond dinner, but as Aerith put it, they'd get to that when they got to it. In the meantime, she'd chosen to just leave a note on the table for Elmyra that she was going out with the guys—no specifications as to _which_ guys—and deal with introducing the strangers later. That meant they had to take Cloud along with them. Which wasn't that big of a deal, considering Prompto was of the opinion that they couldn't just leave him alone in a foreign place.

"They're here!" exclaimed Aerith, running out to meet Noct's new car as Ignis pulled into a space nearby. Stirring himself out of his thoughts, Prompto followed along with Zack as she circled around to the passenger seat to open the door for the prince.

"Hey there, Noct," she said, curtsying as always, and her eyes danced in the neon light of the restaurant sign. (Prompto took the opportunity to snap a picture on his phone. It was no professional camera, but Aerith had always been photogenic enough that it didn't matter.) "You're fashionably late, as usual."

"Hey, Aerith," responded Noct, getting out of the car along with Gladio and Ignis, and looked Zack up and down appraisingly. "This your boyfriend?"

"Zack?" asked Aerith, tilting her head. "I haven't decided yet."

Everyone stared at her for a moment, Zack included. Aerith being Aerith, they might have known she'd come up with a response like that, but she had a habit of surprising them anyway.

Ignis was, as usual, the first to get his feet back under him again. "I see," he said, tossing a pointed glance at Prompto. "A certain somebody told us he  _was_."

It took a moment for Ignis's words to sink in, but then Zack's face lit up. "Prompto, you're the man!" he exclaimed gleefully, Prompto's only warning before he was dragged into an enthusiastic chokehold. "If you ever need a wingman, you know who to call! Once I get a phone!"

Prompto opened his mouth to remind Zack that his fib hadn't magically made them a couple, but Ignis cleared his throat to interrupt them. "Prompto also said you wanted to introduce us, Aerith," he said, and Zack finally let go. "And since you've brought them along tonight, I assume  _that_  at least must be true."

"Yeah," said Aerith, nodding. "Everyone, this is Zack, and that's his friend Cloud over there." She pointed to Cloud, still skulking uncertainly under the awning, eyes fixed on the ground in front of him. "He's feeling a little under the weather, so please just let Zack carry the conversation."

"He didn't haveto come with us," said Gladio, sizing up Cloud, and crossed his arms.

"He… kinda did, actually," said Zack uncomfortably. "Long story, but I promise I'll explain everything later." He turned back to Aerith. "You gonna introduce us to them, too, or was that just a one-way ticket?"

"I was _going_ to, before Gladio interrupted," said Aerith, somewhat crossly, and put her hands on her hips. "But you'll have to excuse his suspicion. As the future Shield of the King, it's his job to keep the prince safe."

"Looks like he's doing a good job of it," said Zack, extending his hand. Gladio shook it firmly, holding on for some time in his traditional gesture of subtle intimidation, and initiated something of a staring contest. Normally, that was enough to set the other man quaking in his boots, but Zack held his gaze. So evenly, in fact, that when Gladio finally let go, he looked impressed. That was a good sign, at least.

"This is Ignis," continued Aerith, gesturing to him. "Officially speaking, he's only a retainer, but don't let that fool you. He can do everything."

Ignis shook Zack's hand briefly as well, courteous but distant. "I assure you that Aerith is grossly exaggerating my talents."

"And last but not least, His Highness, the crown prince," said Aerith, putting her hands behind her back. "Noctis Lucis Caelum."

"I-it's an honor, Your Highness," said Zack, bowing uncertainly. Noct only nodded, just as awkwardly, and Prompto smiled. For all his joking complaints about how Prompto and Aerith never gave him any real respect, Noct had never really known how to handle people treating him like royalty.

"Now that the introductions are out of the way, shall we go inside?" asked Ignis. "It's getting chilly."

"Let's mosey," agreed Zack, heading back to the entrance, and held open the door. Once Noct and Ignis passed through, Aerith herded Cloud along as gently as possible, and Prompto brought up the rear with Gladio.

A word with the host and a short walk later, the seven of them found themselves crowded into an enormous booth in the most isolated area of the restaurant. Which wasn't nearly isolated enough for their purposes, but they'd have to take what they could get.

Cloud seemed far enough out of it that he got one of the end seats, no questions asked. Zack sat next to him, then Aerith, since they were supposed to be dating. Prompto got squished in the exact middle of everyone, but if it was between his sort-of-sister and best friend, he could manage. He'd take that over getting shoved in next to Gladio like Noct, anyway. And Ignis took the other end, probably the better to scrutinize the newcomers.

Zack helped distribute the menus, but Prompto declined his. He had been here just often enough that he already knew exactly what he was getting. This place made a great burger, and after a day like this, he felt like indulging himself a little. But Zack and Cloud had to study the menu more carefully. Or at least, Zack did. Cloud just went through the motions, eyes glazed over.

"Right," said Zack after a short pause, setting down his menu before anyone else. Evidently, he wasn't half as picky as Noct, or as indecisive as Aerith. "Thanks for agreeing to meet with me and Cloud, Your Highness. I know we're… not exactly your standard fare."

"You guys look pretty normal to me," said Noct. "No offense."

"None taken," said Zack. "Actually, that might be the nicest thing anyone's said to me in years. Besides Aerith, of course," he added, and was graced with a distant smile from her direction. She hadn't really said anything especially kind that Prompto had heard, but he had to keep up appearances. And he was clearly a bit of a flatterer.

Noct chuckled. "Then I take it back. If you think being called normal is a compliment, maybe you're a little weird after all."

"Hey!" protested Zack, but there was a good-natured smile on his face. Maybe it was just the hopes of being able to see the king, lifting his spirits, but his jovial demeanor told Prompto he genuinely loved talking to people. He'd said it was one of the things he did best, along with eating, but he must not have been able to socialize for some time if he'd been on the run for so long.

"Yeah," said Gladio, helping the waiter pass out glasses of water for everyone. "Especially since one of you is apparently Prompto's long-lost twin. What's with that?"

"W-we're not sure yet," said Prompto, exchanging an entirely unexpected glance with Cloud, and both of them tensed as they caught one another's eyes. "Glad it's not just me that thinks so, though."

Prompto could sense an impending lull in the conversation, but thankfully, he wasn't the only one. "Is there any particular reason you wanted us to meet your new friends, Aerith?" asked Ignis.

"Yeah," agreed Noct, crossing his arms as if trying to be stern, but his body was relaxed and his lips were turned up. He'd never been good at acting, and Prompto had a few pictures from high school plays to prove it. "I feel kinda ripped off. I was looking forward to seeing if this guy is worth your time, but if you're not actually dating…"

"We  _are_  dating," said Aerith, and Noct's smile became a confused frown. "Technically. But he's not my boyfriend yet."

"Mind telling me how that works?" asked Gladio, looking between them. Prompto stifled a laugh as Zack, looking thunderstruck, mouthed the word 'yet'.

"I found these two sleeping in the church this morning," said Aerith. "I helped them out, and asked Zack to tell me his story in return. He said if I wanted to know everything, I'd have to go out with him once. I agreed, so here we are." She paused, counting off on her fingers. "He still owes me for crushing my flowers, though. And the clothes he's wearing. And the dinner I'm about to buy him. And probably room and board."

"Wow," said Noct, raising his eyebrows. "You're making _Aerith_ cover all the tabs?"

Ignis covered a smile. "Who said chivalry is dead?"

Zack had the decency to look sheepish. "Hey, I'm broke as a joke right now," he said, turning pink. "I don't exactly have what you'd call a steady job, but I'll find a way to pay her back. Somehow. I promise."

"You better," said Gladio. "Hope it was a good story, at least."

"The best I've ever heard," said Aerith serenely, and Zack grinned. His smile was almost proud, but something about it seemed a little sad, too. That was an expression Prompto knew all too well: making the best of suffering. "I think you'll all want to hear it, too, but most of it might have to wait until after dinner." Aerith's eyes lit on Noct's face, taking a turn for the serious. "This is a for-your-ears-only situation. Or, more accurately, the king's ears."

"You want an audience with His Majesty?" asked Ignis, leaning forward with narrowed eyes and piqued interest. "You must have spun quite the tale."

"You gotta be  _damn_  sure about these guys if you're bringing 'em straight to the top like this, Aerith," growled Gladio, resting a fist on the table. "I don't care how good their story is if they're using you to get to Noct. Especially if they're just using Noct to get to King Regis."

Aerith opened her mouth, scowling, but Prompto cut her off. He'd be of more use in persuading them. "For what it's worth, I don't think they are," he said, and all eyes turned to him. "I heard Zack's story, too, and it sounds like the real deal. These two don't seem like they're just looking for a slice of fame and fortune."

"Been there, done that," said Zack, shaking his head. "It wasn't all it was cracked up to be. I'm not about to go looking for more."

That gave everyone pause, but then the waiter returned to take their orders—a sorely needed distraction. One at a time, everyone relayed their choices, except Cloud, who was just going to mooch off Zack's deluxe meal. But they still charged him for an empty plate. Or rather, they charged Aerith, once she made it clear she'd be paying for the strangers' meals as well.

Once the waiter retreated again, Aerith leaned back with a long sigh, and Prompto squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. As a street florist, she didn't have a great deal of disposable income, and she hadn't quite gotten the hang of saving money. She wouldn't _starve_ , if only because of Elmyra's steady job as a seamstress, but she might have to hold off on buying anything that wasn't necessary for some time.

Fortunately, Zack understood, and looked at Aerith with sincere gratitude in his eyes. Prompto was beginning to realize that, like him, all his emotions were written plain across his face. That was probably the greatest difference between himself and Cloud, come to think of it. Cloud hadn't been half so expressive as Zack. "I can't thank you enough, Aerith."

"No, you can't," she agreed, and Gladio grinned. He had always appreciated Aerith's candidness, especially since it came wrapped up in such a demure package. "I'm sure Mom and I will think of something you can do to repay us."

"And the prince should have a say in that, too," said Zack, turning to Noct with a smile. "If you really wanna know whether I'm worth Aerith's time, Your Highness, I think I can at least do a little small talk. But every question I answer, you have to answer too. I wanna know who I'm dealing with just as much as you. Sound good?"

"You're on," said Noct, leaning forward, and matched Zack's grin with ease. "Where are you from?"

"The most backwater town you can imagine," said Zack. "Can't say where, exactly, but I can tell you it's in the middle of nowhere, and half of it is basically a junkyard. I ran away when I was twelve."

"Wait, you can't say where it is?" echoed Gladio, half-laughing. "What, is your sense of direction that bad?"

"Something like that," said Zack. "Seems I can never tell which way is the right one. But that's totally not a fair question, though," he continued, before anyone could say anything further. "I already _know_ where you're from."

Noct shrugged. "Too bad. How old are you?"

Zack paused, half a vocalization catching in his throat. "Twenty-one."

"Had you been going to say something else?" asked Ignis, frowning at Zack's hesitation.

"Some of us are bad with numbers, okay?" retorted Zack, more than a little defensively, and Aerith nodded in understanding. She'd been known to accidentally say she was still eighteen before, because that was how old she still felt. "Nobody's really bothered asking my age since I was nineteen, so I'm still used to answering like that. But what about you, Your Highness?"

"Twenty," said Noct, already moving on. "You said you didn't have a steady job. What do you do for a living?"

"Whatever I can to survive," said Zack. "Last job I took was killing daemons out around Hammerhead."

To Prompto's astonishment, Cloud looked up for the first time. " _Daemons_?" he asked hoarsely. Apparently, there had been a few holes in Zack's explanation earlier today. "You told me it was just, like, manual labor!"

"Well, it _was_ ," said Zack stubbornly. "Can't swing a sword without lifting it, right? And you know how heavy that thing is."

"You have a sword?" asked Noct, eyes lighting up. He'd always had a weakness for weaponry. "What kind?"

"Custom-made," said Zack. "Inherited from a friend. Blade's about Aerith's width and almost her height, so I think that qualifies as a greatsword. But I couldn't take it into the Crown City, so the folks back at the service station are looking after it for now." Zack gave a dejected sigh, but perked up again as he realized it was his turn to reflect the question back at Noct. "What weapons do _you_ use?"

"All kinds," said Noct, as modestly as he could. "I'm best with swords, but my family's supposed to know how to use a lot of different weapons, so…"

"That's awesome!" exclaimed Zack, grinning, and Noct smiled at his genuine praise, trying not to look too proud. Prompto supposed he, and they, had always taken his ability to use multiple weapons for granted, but it really was a rare skill. "I've always wanted to learn something else, but swords are all I know for now. Still, I like to think I know 'em pretty well at this point."

"You must, if you can talk about killing daemons so casually," remarked Ignis, and Gladio looked faintly envious. Even he, with all his disciplined training, had never been out in the field before.

"It's not like it was  _easy_ ," said Zack, ruffling his hair. "Some of 'em gave me a run for my money. Just not my life."

"Is that where you got…" began Noct, his eyes lingering on Zack's scar, but then shook his head. "Never mind. Doesn't look recent enough."

But Zack understood what he had been going to ask, and lifted his fingers to his face distractedly.  "Well… I  _did_ get this fighting a daemon. Even though that was a few years ago, now. So you're not too far off."

Prompto glanced at Zack sideways. Having to refer to his former mentor as nothing more than a daemon must hurt, especially since he'd already mentioned him as a friend. They'd never know it was the same person.

"Damn," said Gladio, raising his eyebrows. "And here I just got mine from some drunk with a knife."

"You know that's a good thing compared to me, right?" asked Zack, crossing his arms, and leaned back in his seat. His eyes never left Gladio's face. "Normal folks shouldn't _have_ to deal with daemons. Leave that to people like me."

The knowingly self-deprecating note in his voice did not go unnoticed, but nobody knew how to respond to it.  Thankfully, Zack was conscious of this, and moved on quickly enough that Noct barely had time to shift in place. "Anyway, Your Highness," he continued, his tone lightening again. "Got any other questions for me?"

Noct sighed. "More than ever," he said, eyeing Zack carefully. "But somehow, I don't think you'll be able to answer them yet."

"Yeah, sorry about that," said Zack, letting out a short breath. "I promise I'll explain everything later. In the meantime, verdict postponed?" He pounded his fist lightly on the table like a tentative gavel. "Commence the awkward silence." Aerith giggled, and Prompto smiled in relief as he felt some of the tension leave the group. (Even Cloud let out a breathy chuckle.)

It seemed that Zack, too, knew the importance of well-timed humor. For someone who'd been on the run for the last year, he was surprisingly adept at feeling his way through potentially sensitive interactions with strangers, getting people to like him even without trying too hard to conform to their expectations. In all honesty, Prompto envied that about as much as Gladio envied his experience.

But what he  _didn't_ envy was Zack's role in the conversation to come.


	5. Exposition (Reprise)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Zack tells the rest of the truth, even though some people have already heard it.

As usual, everything went down at Gladio's house.

It was the best option, really, but it hadn't surprised Aerith any less when Gladio suggested it. He hardly ever invited his  _own_ friends over, let alone other people's. Still, looking back on it, he probably figured that his house was the safest place for such an important conversation to happen. If Zack and Cloud turned out to be threats somehow, Clarus could undoubtedly help subdue them.

It had taken Ignis two trips to ferry them all there, though it was thankfully a very short drive to Gladio's house. They honestly could have walked had half of them not been in food comas, and had Cloud's condition been more stable. But as it was, Ignis had offered to play the chauffeur, and none of them had the heart or the energy to propose that alternative.

Aerith hadn't wanted to leave Zack and Cloud alone with Gladio, even considering how civilly the evening was going, but there had been no reason for her to protest. Zack hadn't had any real problems hanging out for a little while, and Cloud had perked up a little after getting some food in his system, so there was no immediate danger. Gladio simply handed over his keys to Ignis so they could get into his house, and that was that.

So it happened that everyone  _except_ Gladio showed up at Gladio's house.

To say most of them were cautious as they stepped through the entrance hall was an understatement. Clarus may not have had Gladio's temper, but he was still intimidating, and he hadn't been the one to invite them over. Fortunately, they found him in the altogether non-threatening position of reading a newspaper on the couch, over the top of which he glanced at them all in surprise.

"Your Highness," greeted Clarus, folding and setting aside the paper, and removed his reading glasses. "And Aerith? What a pleasant surprise." His gaze swiveled around the group, a slight frown creasing his brow—not that it made much of a visible difference. "Is Gladiolus with you?"

"He will be shortly," said Ignis, giving a slight bow. "Apologies, Clarus, but I'll be right back with him. The others, most particularly Aerith, will brief you on the situation."

Clarus narrowed his eyes as Ignis departed, and Aerith let out a hopefully inaudible breath. He could have chosen less ominous phrasing. "Is everything all right?"

"I think so," said Aerith uncomfortably. "I just made a couple new friends today, and they have a few important things to say. Gladio invited us all over so we could talk."

"This must be especially important, then," said Clarus. "Do you know anything about what they mean to discuss?"

Noct shook his head, but Prompto hesitated, and Aerith spoke. " _Some_ things. It'll be better if we wait for them to explain, though. I don't think Prompto or I could do their story justice, really."

Clarus nodded thoughtfully, sinking down onto the couch again. "I see," he said, putting on his reading glasses and taking up his newspaper once more. "Well, please make yourselves at home until the others come back. Do you have an estimated time?"

"We just came from Ifrit's," said Noct, and Prompto nodded emphatically. "Shouldn't be long." Even as he spoke, the two of them headed to the dining room table and sat down, taking out their phones. The gods only knew what they found so fascinating about those things; Aerith's old flip phone served her needs well enough.

And that reminded her of one of her favorite contacts. "Is Iris here?" asked Aerith, glancing upstairs.

"She's doing homework in her room at the moment," said Clarus, firmly enough that Aerith knew now was not the time for a visit.

"Right," responded Aerith, leaning against the wall, and fixed her eyes on the ceiling, half hoping to pierce through it. Based on what she knew of Iris's study habits, she was probably  _not_ doing homework, but she wasn't about to tattle. The two of them had spent many long hours suffering through their studies together in the years Aerith spent as Iris's babysitter, distracting one another and generally having a wonderful time.

Why Gladio had asked Aerith to look after Iris for a few afternoons a week, she hadn't known at first. The few-but-loyal servants of House Amicitia had practically raised Iris. Had there been some reason they couldn't continue looking after her now? But she couldn't very well turn down a request from someone so high-ranking, and it wasn't as though she'd had anything better to do those afternoons anyway, so she had of course accepted.

Only after she had gotten her first ever paycheck had Aerith realized that Gladio hadn't been asking a favor; he'd hired her for a job. And based on the timing—shortly after Gladio had first dropped by Aerith's house—he'd probably wanted to kick her a few extra gil without giving it to her outright. Though, when she'd asked him about it, he'd turned red and stammered and insisted that she just seemed like she'd be good with kids.

Which had come as quite the surprise to Aerith. Still did, really. She didn't quite see things through the eyes of a child, like so many adults had always seemed to believe. She just saw things _differently_ , caught somewhere between ages so that children didn't understand her perspective either. She had yet to find anyone, of any age, who did. But that was no surprise; Aerith wasn't entirely sure she understood it, herself.

Perhaps the reason why she found herself thinking of Zack and Cloud as friends was because they seemed to see things differently, too. They _had_ to, coming from where they did, and living through what they had. Aerith hadn't realized how listless she had felt until the wind blew them into her life, new and refreshing, and now she found that she felt alive again. Which frightened her a little, since she'd only just met them, but it was exciting, too.

Speak of the devils; Ignis must have given himself some leeway with the traffic laws, to get them back so quickly. But then again, Aerith had a habit of losing track of time whenever she got too deeply involved in her thoughts.

"Hey, Dad," greeted Gladio, leading Zack and Cloud behind him, and Ignis closed the door behind them and brought up the rear. "Meet Aerith's new friends, Zack and Cloud." He gestured to each of them, and they shifted in place awkwardly, exchanging a glance. Clearly, they didn't know what was expected of them.

"Aerith tells me you have news for His Majesty," said Clarus, crossing his arms as he looked each of them over in turn. "As the Shield of the King, I can ensure that it reaches his ears as early as tomorrow."

"S-sir," said Zack, giving an awkward half-bow, and Cloud followed suit hastily. "Thank you."

"We can discuss matters in the study," said Clarus, getting to his feet again, and turned to lead the way without further ado.

"Hold up—er, please wait," said Zack, looking around at everyone else in turn, and Clarus glanced over his shoulder. "Can the others come too? A couple of them already know most of what I'm about to explain, but most of them don't, and I'd hate for anything to get lost in translation."

Clarus hesitated, but Noct nodded encouragingly, so he inclined his head and moved forward without another word. Zack paused to exchange a few low words with Cloud, who shook his head, and they started walking as though nothing had happened. Judging by Zack's questioning tone, Aerith hazarded a guess that he was asking if Cloud wanted to stay behind. He probably didn't want to trigger him with painful memories.

The group followed Clarus down the hallway to a rather expansive study. Aerith looked around, impressed despite herself. Even considering the number of afternoons she'd spent in this house, she had never visited this room before. But as Gladio closed the door behind them, she found that there was no time to take in her surroundings: "Now," said Clarus, seating himself at his desk. "What is this all about?"

"Where to start," sighed Zack, half to himself, and leaned carefully against a sturdy bookshelf. "Lots of this is gonna be news to you, Cloud. And not much of it is gonna be news to _you_ , Prompto and Aerith. But I guess I'd better begin at the beginning anyway, for the rest of you."

"Please do," said Clarus.

Zack took a deep breath, glancing around at those assembled. "Okay, so… cards on the table. Cloud and I were originally from Niflheim."

Clarus's eyes turned icy, but it was Gladio who spoke first. "You're _Niffs_?" he growled, his eyes fixed on Aerith in a burning challenge. His expression pinned her to the wall, demanding to know why she had said nothing, but Aerith stood her ground and bit her tongue. She couldn't tell him in his own house and in front of his own father that this very reaction was exactly why she had kept quiet.

"Yeah," said Zack, grimacing. "That's us. Just your standard pair of mindless beasts, right?"

Noct frowned at Zack's self-deprecating tone, and even Gladio softened slightly as he turned slowly to look at him. Ignis, meanwhile, simply cleared his throat. "You said you were  _originally_ from Niflheim. I take it the two of you are no longer affiliated with the Empire?"

"Glad somebody caught that," said Zack, looking relieved. "Yeah, we're kind of on the run at the moment. For knowing too much. Er, well, really, it's just me that knows too much. Cloud's kind of an innocent bystander, tainted by association."

"And the 'too much' that you know is something important enough to tell the king?" asked Clarus.

Zack nodded. "I was in SOLDIER, and they keep plenty of secrets. And since it was an offshoot of the government's science department as well as a division of the army, I ended up with classified information from both."

"SOLDIER?" asked Noct, tilting his head. "You mean you  _were_ a soldier?"

Zack rolled his eyes, and Aerith suppressed a smile. "I mean, yeah. But the group is also called SOLDIER. It's an elite group of warriors, injected with plasmodia so we'd develop certain daemonic abilities. It's _not_ contagious!" he added, as everyone in the room tensed up and/or took a step back. "I'm not sick, I promise! The Empire runs plenty of tests to screen out anyone who might get plague symptoms."

"Like me," said Cloud gloomily. "They wouldn't give me the shot. I got stuck as an infantryman."

"If the two of you were in the military, there is one thing I must ask before you continue," said Clarus quietly, his expression cold and deadly serious.  "Have either of you taken any Lucian lives?"

"No, sir," said Zack, looking Clarus directly in the eye, and Cloud shook his head mutely. An added layer of tension Aerith hadn't initially noticed dissipated, and she found it suddenly easier to breathe. "We're young enough that we spent most of our time training, and then subduing Wutai. And after that, we fought in the Genesis War."

"The Genesis War?" asked Noct. "What's that?"

"Have any of you heard of Genesis Rhapsodos?" asked Zack, looking around. "SOLDIER First Class?"

Clarus inclined his head. He'd always paid much more attention to the news than Aerith, and he _was_ a veteran. "I have. One of the Empire's more prominent war heroes, and responsible for burning a few Lucian villages to the ground. If I remember correctly, he was killed in Niflheim's war with Wutai several years ago."

"That's probably how it was reported in the media, so it's not like I can say you're remembering it wrong," said Zack. "But he actually deserted with about half our men in Wutai, and then waged war on Niflheim."

"He was on our side?" asked Gladio, frowning. " _That_ would've been helpful to know."

"Maybe he was in touch with Lucis, but I doubt it," said Zack. "It was kind of a personal vendetta. Genesis found out that he and a couple other First Classes had been created through some of the Empire's twisted experiments, and he was dying as a result."

"What kind of experiments?" asked Ignis.

"Seems Niflheim's always been obsessed with giving humans daemonic powers," said Zack, staring at his feet. "Even considering magitek, SOLDIER wasn't their first try. That was the Jenova Project, whose goal was giving a human daemonic powers from birth."

"That's crazy," said Noct, wide-eyed.

"Tell me about it," said Zack. "The Empire was trying to engineer a race of super-soldiers, basically. Daemon powers, human sanity. But as it turns out, the whole 'sanity' thing doesn't work if you don't tell the kids anything about it. Finding out you're dying in your twenties has _got_ to be rough—especially if the reason behind it goes all the way back to your birth, or even before."

"I would imagine so," said Clarus, his words tinged with an inscrutable sigh.

"Anyway, the Empire chose to use the cells of a really specific daemon in their experiments," said Zack. "I don't know why. Maybe it was just because she was humanoid, and female. But they found her in the Disc of Cauthess, sealed in a rock layer from two thousand years ago."

"The Disc of Cauthess?" repeated Ignis, aghast. "Could that have been the creature the Founder King and the First Oracle…"

As Ignis trailed off, Aerith stared at him. Did he mean the daemon that first brought the plague, and caused the long night? The Calamity from the Skies… something that came  _with_ the meteor… the plague that started shortly thereafter… why hadn't she put two and two together sooner? She must have been too preoccupied with studying the Oracle's powers.

Evidently, Zack too understood Ignis's implications, but he only shrugged. "Maybe. But the Empire dug her up anyway, named her Jenova, took her back to Niflheim, and started up the experiments. SOLDIER was founded a little while later as a separate but related project. Probably to figure out how to dilute the plasmodia so humans wouldn't get sick and die, or become daemons."

Noct pulled a face. "And you actually have some of that stuff inside you?"

"Hey, 'that stuff' has saved my life a few times," said Zack, scowling. "And you gotta keep in mind, I was twelve at the time, and SOLDIER was still pretty recent. It's not like I could've done any research beforehand."

"I can't believe the Niffs recruit  _kids_ ," mumbled Noct. "That's just… wrong."

"Well, it's not like they threw me out on the battlefield right away," said Zack, almost defensively. "I didn't see any real fighting till I was at least sixteen. And Cloud didn't even join till he was what, fourteen?"

Cloud nodded, but his heart wasn't in it. "Think you're getting sidetracked."

"Oh, yeah," said Zack, running a hand through his hair. "Thanks. Where was I?"

"The Jenova Project," said Ignis. "And the fact that Genesis was dying as a result of it."

"Yeah," said Zack, his eyes growing more distant. "Anyway, the scientists thought Genesis was a failure at first, since their tests showed he was a normal human child, so they handed him off to a normal set of parents to raise. One of the other children, Angeal, was raised in the same town."

"Angeal," said Clarus. "Hewley?"

"That's the one," said Zack. "The two of them never knew about the project, but they became best friends."

"That's a hell of a coincidence," remarked Gladio, and Clarus shot him a reproachful glance. He'd never much approved of swearing, even just as emphasis.

"Oh, it gets weirder," said Zack. "I'm sure you've all heard of the third and last child of the Jenova Project, because that was Sephiroth." Sure enough, everyone's expressions darkened in unpleasant recognition. "He was raised by the government. Joined SOLDIER as soon as he could, or maybe he was forced to, and worked his way up through the ranks to became a war hero."

"Long as you're from the Empire, yeah," said Gladio. "On our side, he was more of a monster."

"Yeah," said Zack. "Hero, villain, it's all a matter of whose side you're on. I learned that the hard way." He let out a short, humorlessly laughlike breath. "But however you see Sephiroth, Genesis joined SOLDIER to prove he was even stronger. And Angeal followed Genesis everywhere, so the three of them ended up meeting at the top, all without any idea of the project that created all of them."

"Wow," said Noct, looking startled. "That's… some kind of lucky. Or unlucky."

"Yeah," agreed Zack. "Everything was fine for a few years, but then Genesis got hurt during one of their training sessions. When the wound didn't heal, Hollander—one of the scientists—told him his body was degrading."

"Degrading?" asked Ignis. "As in, weakening?"

"Judging by the cracked skin and graying hair, yeah," said Zack. "But you'd never know it from his fighting technique. I was on the receiving end of his sword a couple times, and let me tell you, he was still _inhumanly_ strong. Or… just inhuman, I guess. He was sort of becoming a daemon. Still mostly humanoid, but he grew a black wing out of his shoulder."

"Just the one?" asked Noct, tilting his head.

"Yeah, but he could apparently still fly," put in Prompto, and all eyes turned to him as he answered everyone's unspoken question. "Somehow."

"Huh."

"All that aside, Hollander had a grudge against the Empire, too," said Zack. "He'd headed the less successful branch of the project, so Besithia ended up favoring Hojo over him. He and Genesis split from the government, got a little inside help to embezzle some funds, and unofficially declared war on Niflheim."

"How'd they manage to declare war on an empire with just two people?" asked Gladio, frowning.

"Two people  _and_ the soldiers Genesis took with him," Clarus reminded him. "But that does still seem small for an army."

" _Copies_ ," said Zack, shuddering. "They figured out how to translate Genesis's genes onto other people, like some kind of instant cloning technology. I don't know the details, but I think it involved some kind of mind control, or at least will control."

"That's fucked up," breathed Gladio, and Clarus was too entranced by the story even to glare at him.

"Angeal followed Genesis," said Zack. "Even though he wasn't degrading, he couldn't stay in SOLDIER knowing what Niflheim had done. Turned out his genes could be copied, too, but he only ever worked with monsters." He shook his head. "I don't know if it was because he couldn't do that to humans, or because he just didn't want to."

"Those copies," said Clarus. "Did they degrade and become daemons, like Genesis?"

"Yeah," said Zack, his voice oddly strangled, and cleared his throat. "But that went both ways. Turned out that those daemons could influence _his_ genetics, too."

Ignis pursed his lips. "Then… it's safe to assume that he mutated?"

Zack nodded shortly, and again touched his scar. "Yeah."

This time, no one needed to ask for clarification, and there was a moment of silence as  Zack recollected himself with an effort. It had to be difficult for him, thought Aerith, to have to retell such a story twice in one day. Noct seemed sorry, probably for having mentioned his scar earlier, but said nothing.

Eventually, Zack cleared his throat. "Now, as for Sephiroth," he continued, but Cloud tensed immediately at the unexpected name. Aerith jumped at the motion; he had been so still and quiet throughout Zack's explanation that she had almost forgotten he was there. "Sorry, bud," added Zack. "You good?"

"Y-yeah," said Cloud, taking a deep breath, and fixed his eyes on the floor. He looked as though he was trying to make himself seem as small as possible, yet Aerith got the feeling that he was not intending to do so. Shrinking down was just his body's natural reaction. "Keep going."

Zack eyed Cloud suspiciously, but obeyed. "Sephiroth may have been their friend, but he didn't follow Genesis and Angeal. Since he was created from different experiments, he wasn't going through any of the same issues. And he still didn't know anything about the Jenova Project. He'd only been told that Jenova was the name of his mother, and that she died after he was born."

"So he stayed loyal to the Empire?" asked Noct.

"You could say that," said Zack. "He didn't turn on them right away, at least. It wasn't like he was all that nationalistic, though. I feel like…" He tilted his head back to stare at the ceiling thoughtfully. "He probably just wanted to figure out what was going on before he made a decision, because leaving would have to be final. And everyone on both sides were so prejudiced, it was hard to tell what the truth really was."

"You knew him pretty well, huh," said Gladio, but his remark was overshadowed by his father's.

"I had no idea Niflheim was going through so much inner turmoil," said Clarus. "I suppose they went to great lengths to keep it a secret from their enemies. Though I must admit, I'm surprised that Genesis never came forward with the information you have."

"And I'm not surprised at all," said Zack. "The guy was _delusional._ He joined SOLDIER with the intention of showing up Sephiroth, remember."

"So he intended to bring the Empire to its knees with as few allies as possible?" asked Ignis. "Proving himself in the eyes of his creators, so to speak?"

"Exactly," said Zack, nodding. "And because Sephiroth couldn't degrade, Genesis got jealous. He was convinced Sephiroth could help him in some way, and kept trying to get him to switch sides. That didn't work out too well at first, but Genesis must've gotten to him on some level, because Sephiroth eventually told me he might abandon the Empire after all."

"Did he desert?" asked Noct.

"You… could say that," said Zack, staring at the ground, and his tone grew tenser. "When he told me that, we'd just been assigned to investigate a plasmodia leak at the facility where they kept Jenova. Near Cloud's hometown, Nibel."

Aerith glanced over at Cloud to find him absolutely rigid, and Ignis frowned. "The Empire assigned two of their best to investigate a contaminated facility?"

"We're SOLDIERs," Zack pointed out. "Obviously, we still shouldn't expose ourselves to too much of the plasmodia, but it's less dangerous for us than for normal citizens since we've got some of it in us. I guess it's kinda like a vaccine, if vaccines caused some light sensitivity before your body readjusted."

"Light sensitivity," muttered Prompto, wincing. He'd never liked needles or daemons, let alone both at once. "Right."

"Anyway, I fixed the broken valve," said Zack. "But then Genesis came and told Sephiroth about the experiments, then asked him to help again, like he was hoping he'd changed his mind. But Sephiroth refused, and locked himself in the library to do some research. And then…" He took a deep breath, looking over at Cloud. "I don't know what he found, but a week later, he came out and burned the entire village down."

" _What_?" This time it was Noct who interrupted.

"I-it's true," said Cloud quietly, closing his eyes, and hugged his arms to his chest as though to tighten his grip on reality. "I couldn't get to Mom's house in time. And Tifa…" His voice shook and died, and Aerith jotted down a mental note. Was that the 'girl he liked' that Zack had mentioned?

"I followed Sephiroth to Jenova," said Zack, calling everyone's attention back to himself. "I think he was going to take her body with him for some reason, maybe to infect other people—I don't know. I challenged him, but he sent me flying down a flight of stairs. I could barely move, but he didn't seem interested in killing me. Just went right back to his _mother_."

"I took Zack's sword," said Cloud, his voice flat and distant, and his eyes remained firmly shut, flickering under his lids. "I went after Sephiroth. I stabbed him in the back, and I thought that was enough. I went back to hold Tifa. But then he came back with Jenova's head."

Cloud swallowed, Prompto flinched, and Noct looked thoroughly grossed out. "Sephiroth cut off her _head_?"

"Yeah," said Zack, to spare Cloud from having to respond. "I could barely breathe, but I managed to tell Cloud to finish the job. And I didn't see the fight, but…"

"I tried to attack him, but he just swatted me away," said Cloud. "Knocked me into the next room and—and stabbed me. Here." He rested a shaking hand over his sternum. "Lifted me into the air. Told me…" Cloud leaned against the bookshelf for support, his tone clipped and panicky, each phrase almost like a sob. "Told me not to test him. I took the blade—moved it further—in—side me—till I was standing on the gr—ground, and—"

"Hey, hey, you don't have to say any more!" exclaimed Zack, moving swiftly over to Cloud's side, but seemed reluctant to touch him. Aerith didn't blame him. Who knew whether attempts at comfort would help or hinder, in a state like this?

Cloud didn't even seem to hear Zack, almost as though he was in a trance. "Used his sword as leverage," he said, opening his eyes. His pupils were so dilated they looked almost black; he wasn't seeing what was in front of him anymore. "Threw him off—the bridge—"

Even as Cloud spoke, Zack pulled him into a hug, muffling his voice, and simply held him.  Aerith would have expected Cloud to struggle, but instead, he froze… and then visibly relaxed, his shallow breaths gradually deepening and evening out. Perhaps Zack's touch was familiar enough to him, even if he might not remember it consciously, that it did not feel too claustrophobic.

" _You_  killed Sephiroth?" asked Noct, in a hushed voice, eyes wide open and fixed on Cloud. "And lived to tell?"

"Barely," said Zack, taking over again, though he kept his voice low and soothing in a direct contrast to the words he spoke. "Cloud was staggering when he came back, and fell down the stairs right next to me. Blood everywhere, all of it his." His tone took a turn for the resentful. "I blacked out, thinking we were both done for, but Hojo… uh, _saved_ us."

"You'd rather have died?" asked Clarus sardonically.

"We may as well have," said Zack, scowling, and finally let the shaken Cloud go. "Hojo kept us unconscious for two years, and the gods only know what he did to us. It was a miracle either of us woke up at all." He sighed. "Anyway, I don't know how, but about a year ago, I came to and busted Cloud out too. But he was in a coma, because whatever Hojo did to us, I think it involved the plasmodia."

"And he hadn't passed the Empire's tests," mused Ignis.

"Right," said Zack. "I couldn't leave Cloud, so I hauled him around with the Empire on our tail. Wasn't long before I decided to get us both to Lucis and make a new life there. But I had to put Genesis out of his misery first, because he'd started going after Cloud. Something about Hojo's tests. Genesis thought they'd given Cloud the ability to cure what ailed him in Sephiroth's place. I still say he was delusional."

"You killed Genesis Rhapsodos?" asked Clarus, blinking a few times in surprise.

"I was a SOLDIER First Class too, y'know," said Zack, a little crossly, and everyone stared at him. Aerith wasn't especially surprised, given the level of skill he claimed, but to hear conclusively that he had attained the same rank as such dangerous warriors was somewhat disarming. Zack took in their expressions, eyebrows raised, and then ruffled his hair. "Guess I must've forgotten to mention that."

"If what you say is true, you and Cloud together have rid Lucis of some of its most dangerous threats," said Clarus. "I'm sure that, regardless of your previous affiliation with the Empire, you will both be offered a full pardon."

Zack narrowed his eyes. It was the first time Aerith had seen him look anything close to angry, and she glimpsed a hint of the authoritative attitude she had seen once before—also in defense of Cloud. (He must really have embraced the role of protector over the last year.) " _If_ what I say is true?" repeated Zack. "What do you want, more proof? Don't you think Cloud is traumatized enough?"

Cloud looked as though he'd like nothing more than to disappear, but Clarus hardly glanced his way. "I apologize," said Clarus. "I meant to lead into asking what, of all that, you intended to tell His Majesty."

"I'm getting to that," said Zack. "Cloud and I made it to Lucis with the help of the Turks, who are basically the secret service. They were supposed to capture us so we don't talk to anyone, just like we're doing now. Except one of them decided to lend us a hand instead." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess she wasn't too happy with the way the Empire was running things, either."

"You got lucky," said Gladio.

"I wish," said Zack, crossing his arms, and several pairs of eyes rolled, most prominently Cloud's. (Even Clarus glanced skyward.) "But no, she just gave us some intel and the keys to her motorcycle, and that was that."

"That's _not_ what I meant," growled Gladio. "Also, for the record, Aerith is way too good for you."

"Oh," said Zack, brought up short, and turned pale as he looked frantically over in Aerith's direction. "Don't worry! Cissn—she's not really my type, and we don't actually have any history. She just happens to be the only girl I knew back then!"

"Don't worry about it," said Aerith, struggling not to laugh. "You owe her your life, right? She deserves a little praise."

Zack let out a possibly exaggerated sigh of relief. "Yeah. Would've been a walk in the park for her to catch us, with Cloud out of commission, but I guess she must've felt sorry for us. I think she got the rest of the Turks on our side somehow, since their leader helped us out later on, but she's not the kind of person who'd ever admit that."

Clarus gave a faint hum. "Until how recently was Cloud 'out of commission', as you put it?"

Zack hesitated. "Uh… till just this morning, actually," he said, as though the words were stuck in his throat. Once again, everyone except for Prompto and Aerith stared at Cloud incredulously. "And I hate to do this, Aerith, really I do, but—"

Ice flooded Aerith's veins as she realized what he was about to say. "Zack," she began, desperately, and all eyes turned to her in confusion and alarm. The last thing she wanted was for any of them to think of her differently. Even though Prompto hadn't had much of a chance to respond when she'd mentioned the glow this morning, she could tell his instinct had been to reject the very idea. "Please, don't—"

"I'm sorry," said Zack, cutting her off. "But I'm pretty sure Aerith woke Cloud up from his coma by healing him with the power of the _Oracle_."


	6. An Oracle by Any Other Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aerith comes to terms with her newly discovered abilities… with some difficulty.

Aerith's newfound power was _not_ news to Prompto.

Still, he found himself staring at her anyway, if only because he'd just now remembered about it. Aerith was a master at sweeping things under the rug if she didn't want to talk about them, so she hadn't given him much of a chance to reflect on her abilities. It helped that he'd never actually seen them for himself, but even if he had, he'd still have been more preoccupied with Cloud's resemblance.

"But… that's impossible," said Noct, gazing at the shattered Aerith as though he had never seen her before. " _Luna's_ the Oracle. I know she is."

"I know what I saw," said Zack stubbornly. "Aerith tried to help me pick up Cloud, but as soon as she touched him, there was this golden light. And when she touched him again, for longer, he woke up." He gestured between Cloud and Aerith. "He was sick from the plasmodia, and she cured him. Isn't that what the Oracle does?"

All faces turned to Aerith in search of an explanation, and she backed against the nearest shelf. "I—I don't know what happened, all right?" she asked, looking around at everyone, but could meet none of their eyes. "I've never been able to do anything that before. For all I know, it was the gods taking pity on him!"

Speaking of taking pity, Aerith was clearly distressed, and that was rare enough that it spoke to how serious an issue this was for her. Even though everyone was more shocked than disapproving, she probably felt like they had abandoned her in some way. "Well, they _were_ in a church," said Prompto, drawing the others' attention to him, and Aerith tossed him a grateful glance. "You never know."

"Be that as it may, that does sound like a description of the Oracle's powers," said Clarus. "I saw Lady Sylva at work once or twice, long ago."

"But the Draconian _gave_  the Oracle those powers, right?" asked Aerith, a little more calmly now that Prompto had helped her out. "Maybe he just… decided to work through me, so he could help Cloud."

Clarus shook his head. "The Six don't make a habit of interfering in human life so directly," he said. "Especially not to favor specific individuals. As far as I know, the gods have only ever granted their power to the blood of the Oracle and the Lucian kings in accordance with the prophecy."

"Wait, you actually _believe_ in that prophecy?" asked Zack, raising his eyebrows. "I didn't take you guys to be into the whole 'Chosen One' thing."

Prompto glanced over at Noct to find him looking distinctly uncomfortable, but Ignis spoke first. "You believe in the Oracle's powers, but not in the King of Kings?"

"I'm just not the biggest fan of destiny, that's all," said Zack, crossing his arms. "Like, the Six working through the Oracle to heal people makes sense. But if they saddled one person with the fate of the whole world, they'd have to take away that person's ability to follow their own path, and I just don't think that's fair. And if there ever is a Chosen King, I bet he's gonna feel the same way."

Noct cleared his throat. "Yeah," he said, fixing his eyes firmly on the floor. "He does."

There was a long and awkward silence. Zack froze, Cloud blinked, and Prompto smiled slightly at their reactions despite himself. At least they had a few good surprises on their side, too.

"Uh," said Zack eventually, and swallowed. "Are you… sure?"

"Luna told me when we were kids, and my dad backed her up," said Noct, shrugging, and Aerith glanced toward the door almost as if hoping to make a break for it. (Prompto knew she wouldn't actually do it, but it was a good indication of how anxious she really was.) "So unless you wanna tell me they're both wrong…"

Zack and Cloud both shook their heads. "No, no," said Zack. "Definitely not. Sorry, Your Highn… uh, sire."

"We seem to have gotten sidetracked," remarked Ignis, and Aerith's expression darkened again. "Noct's role is not the one in question. I believe we had been discussing the similarity between Aerith's abilities and those of the Oracle."

"Well, she  _was_ adopted," said Gladio, looking Aerith up and down thoughtfully, yet spoke almost as if she wasn't really there. "Maybe she's a relative of Lady Lunafreya's."

"But she doesn't look anything like Luna," said Noct, crossing his arms, studying Aerith like he might study a portrait. "Or Ravus."

"Keep in mind that it _has_ been two thousand years since the Draconian bequeathed his power to the Oracles," said Ignis. "It isn't out of the question that the lineage divided at some point, with the main branch becoming the royalty of Tenebrae, and the other moving elsewhere."

"I-it's true that I don't know anything about my real parents," said Aerith, hugging her arms to herself. "Only that my biological mother died shortly after I was born. But I already told you, nothing like this has ever happened before! I'm not even religious!"

"There's a first time for everything, Aerith," said Clarus coolly, and Prompto tossed an accusatory glance in Zack's direction, only to find him already looking guilty for bringing up the Oracle's power. Evidently, he hadn't expected the Accordan Inquisition. He probably _should_ have, if he had decided to mention something so unexpected.

"What about your sixth sense for people?" asked Gladio. At least he was addressing Aerith directly this time. "I can't think of a time when you were wrong about somebody. Seems like you have a solid grasp on who people are from the very beginning." His eyes flicked to Zack and Cloud briefly, but then snapped back to Aerith's face with unnerving intensity.

"It's just instinct," said Aerith, more and more desperate. "Ignis has good people senses, too. It's an Aquarius thing."

"I can't speak to astrological influences, but there are specific reasons why I believe this or that about someone," said Ignis evenly. "You usually act based on flashes of intuition, such as when you took in these two today, or when you encouraged Prompto to befriend Noct."

"I have my reasons, too!" retorted Aerith. "Zack and Cloud needed my help, and Prompto and Noct needed friends. It doesn't take any magic to figure out that a couple guys asleep in a church don't have anywhere else to go, or that two lonely kids might get something out of talking!"

"You can't have known for sure I was lonely," said Noct, and Clarus bowed his head. He'd probably heard direct contradiction from King Regis. "Most people assumed I just liked being by myself. And you've always had plenty of friends, but you'd still been going to talk to me yourself, before you dragged Prompto into it."  


"I've always been _friendly_ ," snapped Aerith, sounding anything but. "That doesn't mean the friends I've had have been good. Prompto was the only real friend I had, but I sent him to you anyway, because you needed each other more." Prompto couldn't help but stare at her. She tended to speak more bluntly when her emotions were running high, but even so, he hadn't expected her to say something like that aloud.

There was no way he could let this silence go unbroken. Not when she'd always insisted… "And here I thought you just didn't want Noct to think you were trying to become the princess someday," remarked Prompto, and Aerith's eyes brimmed with gratitude for his attempted intervention.

Unfortunately, it seemed the others would not be sidetracked so easily. "So Prompto needed Noct more," mused Gladio. "You keep using that word, 'need'. How do you know what people need?" But he didn't wait for Aerith's response. "It's a feeling you get, right? Iris told me she asked one time, and you told her you can just tell."

"And that goes beyond mere instinct," cut in Ignis smoothly, not allowing either Aerith or Prompto a word in edgewise. "You've mentioned some of your dreams to us before. Quite a lot of them have come true, haven't they?"

"I… I guess," said Aerith in a low voice, and reluctant was too mild a word to describe her tone. It sounded as though something was dragging the words out against her will. "But it's more déjà vu than anything else, and you know it." As she spoke, something occurred to Prompto, and he frowned. His memory wasn't the most reliable, but he didn't remember her talking about any dreams like that before…

"Hey, what about Pryna?" he asked, and Aerith turned a ferocious glare on him. "D-don't look at me like that!"

"Then leave my dog out of this!"

"I'm just saying," said Prompto, forcing himself to continue despite Aerith's glower. "You gotta admit it's a little weird for such a beautiful dog to be a stray in the first place, let alone to make it all the way to your house without anyone so much as seeing her. And she doesn't seem like she's aged a day the whole time I've known her."

"Hey, uh," said Noct, looking alarmed. "Did you say no one even _saw_ her?"

"Didn't you hear that story?" asked Prompto, tilting his head. "Pryna showed up on Aerith's doorstep when the two of us were kids—way back before we knew you. She was injured, so Aerith helped her out, and she ended up staying. But when we asked around to see if she belonged to anyone in the area, since she wasn't wearing a collar or anything, no one even recognized her."

"Oh," said Noct, scratching his head. "That reminds me of… another dog I know. Luna's, actually. I ever tell you guys about Umbra?"

"Might've mentioned his name once or twice," said Gladio. "Once you got home from Tenebrae."

"Yeah, well, he visits me now and again," said Noct, looking distinctly on edge, and Prompto frowned in confusion. How? Didn't he live with Lady Lunafreya, a continent away, and on the other side of a war? "And, not that I'd know what to look for, but… it doesn't seem like _he's_ aged at all since I was a kid, either."

"Wait, he visits you?" asked Gladio, voicing Prompto's thoughts, and Clarus leaned forward, intrigued. "How's that work?"

"That's what I'm saying," said Noct. "I don't know. Umbra just shows up sometimes, even though Luna is all the way in Tenebrae, and… he carries a notebook, so we can send each other messages." Ordinarily, Prompto would tease him by asking what _kind_ of messages, but now was not the time. "And it seems like no one ever notices him, either, even though he sometimes makes it all the way to my room to see me." Noct paused, then turned to Prompto. "Got any pictures of Pryna handy?"

He'd only been to Aerith's house a handful of times, so he couldn't be expected to remember what exactly Pryna looked like. Prompto was more than willing to help jog his memory. "Only about a million," he said, pulling out his phone and opening his 'Best <3 Pupper <3 Ever <3' album to show her off. Pryna was one of his favorite subjects, although for some reason, only a fraction of the pictures he took seemed to turn out sharp.

Noct's eyes widened as Prompto handed him his phone. "They're almost identical," he remarked, all doubt vanishing from his expression as he flicked through the photos. "Only Umbra's dark gray, with some white markings. And his eyes are orange instead of blue. But they're the same breed, size, everything."

"Oh," said Aerith, in a small voice, and Prompto knew from her dull and hollow eyes that the fire of denial had been extinguished. Here was a connection she could not contradict—and from one of the most unexpected places in her life, no less. "And you say Umbra is Lady Lunafreya's dog… the Oracle's dog." She spoke slowly, as if unable or unwilling to believe it.

"Yeah," responded Noct, handing Prompto back his phone, and leaned against the nearest bookshelf with a sigh. "I guess you might be related. Somehow."

Prompto knew Noct's tone was only so indifferent because he was preoccupied, still getting used to the idea that two of his childhood friends were distantly connected. However, for all her sensitivity, Aerith had no such insight into his inner workings—or perhaps her own emotions simply colored her perception of his. But she didn't say anything. She only touched her fingers together, quietly distraught, and looked more lost than Prompto had ever seen her before.

Pocketing his phone again, Prompto reached Aerith's side before he even knew he was moving, and pulled her into a hug. The others weren't doing a great job of showing her that they still cared about her as a person, given that they'd all ganged up on her to prove their point. If only to make up for his own hand in her pain, it fell to Prompto to pick up the pieces.

Or so he thought. As Aerith buried her face in Prompto's chest, wordlessly accepting his equally silent apology, Zack cleared his throat and took a few tentative steps forward. "Hey, uh, I'm sorry for bringing that up," he said, and Aerith stopped breathing briefly. "I didn't know it was that big a deal to you. Or any of _you_ ," he added, narrowing his eyes at everyone else. "It's not like Aerith asked for any of this, you know. Would it kill you guys to show a little more support?"

"What did we do?" asked Noct, looking genuinely taken aback. Prompto couldn't really blame him for his confusion. He could count on one hand the number of times any of them had managed to hurt Aerith's feelings, in all the years they'd known her. Moments of vulnerability like this were few and far between. In fact, her resilience had always been part of what they liked about her.

Ignis sighed. "If I had to guess, I'd say Aerith is worried that we're going to think differently of her now," he said, then turned to address Aerith directly. "I promise that you are more distressed about this revelation than any of us, and I apologize for failing to take your feelings into account." Though Aerith did not look up as Ignis spoke, she nodded in acceptance.  


"We might've gotten a little carried away," said Gladio, and this time, Aerith peered at him slowly over Prompto's shoulder. "But we're not mad at you or anything, all right? Just trying to straighten things out a little."

"Yeah," said Noct, crossing his arms. "You're still you. Nobody could change that if they tried."

"And gods know people have tried," said Prompto, smiling only after Aerith smiled too. The guys may not have been the best at offering comfort, but she preferred that everyone speak from the heart, even if their phrasing was clumsy. Her sixth sense, now explained by her heritage, took care of interpreting the intentions behind the words.

After a short silence, Aerith stepped away from Prompto and took a deep breath. "Sorry about that," she said matter-of-factly, fidgeting with her hands. "Just got a little overwhelmed for a moment. But I—I'm okay now."

"You sure?" asked Zack, raising his eyebrows. "This does seem like kind of a lot to take in."

"Yeah, but it's easier to deal with now that I'm not being shouted down anymore," said Aerith, putting her hands on her hips. "I swear to the Six, if any of you develop some kind of power you didn't know you had, I'm never going to let you forget it." And Prompto knew, from the way Aerith met everyone's eyes in turn this time, that she really was all right.

"I thought you weren't religious," said Gladio, grinning, and Aerith swatted at him in playful exasperation. Zack and Cloud exchanged a bemused glance, and Prompto smiled at their surprise. Aerith had gotten over things with astonishing speed for as long as he could remember, once some kind of certainty was established. It was ambiguity that she didn't know how to handle, like losing track of where she stood with everyone.

Clarus cleared his throat, and all eyes turned to him. "I'm glad to see that a personal resolution has been reached, but this conversation is not yet over," he said, interlacing his fingers. "If we assume that Aerith is the related to the Oracle, it seems that their healing powers are tied to the bloodline rather than the sacred title. In other words, she need not be recognized by the Six to heal the people of Lucis."

Aerith froze at his implications, but Gladio spoke up. "She's not a _commodity,_ Dad," he interrupted, glowering. "Zack's right. Knowing those powers exist is enough to handle without also telling her what she should do with them."

"Rest assured that I have no intention of making pronouncements about Aerith's duties tonight," said Clarus. "But I believe she should go with Zack and Cloud to see His Majesty tomorrow, and it's possible—dare I say, likely—that he will think along the same lines. And, as the king, he will have the right to make those pronouncements."

"So you're saying… I should be prepared for anything," mumbled Aerith, and Prompto put his arm around her reassuringly. At least she wouldn't be alone, even if her only companions would be almost-strangers. (What he wouldn't give to go with them.)

Clarus nodded. "Exactly." His eyes narrowed, sliding back over to Zack and Cloud. "As should you two. Don't think I've forgotten that you still haven't told us what you intend to tell the king."

"Yeah, that's because we came here to tell  _the king_ ," said Zack, scowling right back at Clarus. Having lived through as much as he had, it was no real surprise that he was impervious to House Amicitia's intimidation tactics. "If you seriously think the things I have to say aren't gonna be important, even after everything I've told you, think again."

After a short staring contest, Clarus finally sighed and bowed his head. It was the first time Prompto had seen him back down, and judging by Gladio's expression, he'd never seen anything like that either. "Very well. I'll brief His Majesty on what you've already told me, and ensure that you're scheduled for an audience at his earliest convenience. Most likely tomorrow morning, given how urgent this appears to be."

"Really?" asked Zack, his air of authority vanishing like mist in sunlight, and the goofiest grin spread across his face. "Awesome! Thanks, Mr. Shield of the King!"

"Clarus," said Clarus, and Prompto realized he'd never bothered introducing himself beyond his title. Initially, he'd probably thought they'd either already know his name, or that they wouldn't need to know. "Clarus Amicitia."

Zack nodded, his eyes more serious already. "One more thing, Mr. Amicitia. Cloud and I just arrived in the Crown City, and we're flat broke. Aerith's already helped us out _way_ more than she had to, so I don't wanna impose on her anymore. Do you know anywhere we can spend the night?"

To Prompto's astonishment, Aerith shook her head and stepped forward. "My house," she said firmly, and Zack and Cloud both blinked at her. "You're not imposing. If anything, it's more convenient that way, since I actually have contact information. And besides, Ignis can pick all three of us up in one place, instead of having to make another stop."

"Since when am I driving?" asked Ignis, more surprised than cross.

"Since always," pointed out Aerith, and Ignis raised his eyebrows, but couldn't really argue with that, especially since Aerith turned right back to Zack again. "Besides, how am I supposed to get even with you for bringing up that whole Oracle business if you stay somewhere else? You have to stay in my house so I can have my revenge."

Zack let out an awkward chuckle, but it was Cloud who spoke. "You're just going to be getting even with _Zack_ , right?" he asked, eyeing her warily. "Not me? I didn't know anything about this."

"That's right," said Aerith, her expression lighting up. "Hold on—you know all his weaknesses, don't you? You can help me!"

"I think it's about time to cut this short," interrupted Clarus, suddenly looking very tired. "Ignis, if you would…"

Ignis nodded. "Right," he said, gesturing to the door. "Everybody out. Noct and Prompto, you'll have to stay here for a little while. I'm going to drop off these three at Aerith's house."

Prompto led the way, ignoring Zack as he jokingly scolded Cloud for his ingratitude ("I kept you alive all by myself for a whole year, and this is the thanks I get?!"), and opened the door. As he did so, he thought he saw something disappear up the stairs—rapid footsteps, a swish of a skirt. _Iris_? Prompto opened his mouth to call her name, but then shut it again. The last thing he wanted was to get her in trouble just for being curious.

And besides, if he played his cards right, he might be able to get her to take _him_ to the Citadel, too.


	7. Audience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a course of action is… mostly… decided.

Few things in life terrified Aerith so much as the Citadel's waiting area.

Granted, part of the reason she felt so on edge was because she was waiting for the déjà vu to kick in. She'd awakened with the sense that she'd dreamt of something important, as sometimes she did, before snapping awake to find that Pryna had nudged her way beneath her hand. But this felt even more crucial than usual. Almost as though not remembering would be dangerous.

Still, there was no use making herself more anxious by dwelling on it. Aerith cast around in her mind for a topic of conversation—something, anything, to soothe her nerves. And then said the first thing that came to mind: "Wh-what did you guys think of my mom?"

Zack and Cloud both looked at Aerith like she was crazy, startled by the irrelevance, but it lasted only a moment. "She's nice," said Zack. "I'm just glad she was in her room when we got back to your house, because I feel like she'd be a lot  _less_ nice if she'd met us at the door. Unless it's normal for you to come home at night with two guys she's never met?"

Aerith giggled, half out of relief at how effortlessly Zack could lighten the mood. Making conversation was definitely the right decision. "Unfortunately, it's not."

Cloud blinked a few times at her 'unfortunately', but said nothing. Zack, on the other hand, stifled his laughter with difficulty. "I didn't really have the time to question it before, but now that you say that, I'm kinda wondering. Does your mom always let your guy friends sleep over?"

"Well, the only real guy friends I've had have been the ones you've met," said Aerith. "You think Mom could say no to Prompto? Or the prince?"

"But in your room?" pressed Zack. Aerith had told Cloud to take her bed, since he deserved it, and as good as ordered Zack to take the floor next to it. He'd probably be much more adept at comforting him if he had any nightmares.

"It's not like I was in my room  _with_ you," pointed out Aerith. She'd slept on the couch downstairs. "And even if I was, I'm an adult, and Mom trusts me. I don't think she really cares what I do, as long as it's my choice to do it. And as long as I don't wake her up." She paused thoughtfully. "Which would be hard to do, since she wears earplugs to bed."

Cloud fidgeted at the implications, but Zack only raised his eyebrows. "Noted."

But the levity Aerith and Zack had managed to create vanished the instant a guard walked up to them, and the three of them rose automatically. "The king is ready to speak with you, but the only surnames on record belong to you two." She nodded to Aerith and Zack, eyes flicking to Cloud. "What is your full name, young man?"

"Cloud Strife," said Cloud, and the guard nodded, motioning the three of them to follow her to the throne room.

Aerith shot a sideways glance in Cloud's direction. " _Cloud Strife_?"

"Leave me alone," mumbled Cloud, his ears turning pink. "It's not my fault."

"And there are weirder things about this than Cloud's name, anyway," said Zack, keeping his tone light and casual in an attempt to re-diffuse the tension. "Pretty sure nobody asked who I was, either. But I guess I _was_ a SOLDIER First Class, so anyone who knows my first name could probably find my last."

As they arrived at an enormous set of double doors, another guard opened them at a nod from the first. "Zack Fair and Cloud Strife to see you as requested, Your Majesty," she announced.

Panic flared in Aerith's chest as her name was omitted, and Zack frowned, putting his arm comfortingly around her shoulders. "Hey—what about Aerith?"

The guards exchanged a glance, evidently just as confused. "The Shield of the King informed us that you two have some information for His Majesty's ears only," said one of them. "He told us that this young lady is unrelated to the issue at hand."

"Yeah, well," said Zack. "Aerith did take us in, so I think we owe her an explanation. Assuming she wants to hear it, anyway."

Aerith hesitated, but inclined her head. Their information may have been sensitive, or perhaps even dangerous, but this was no time for dilly-dallying—and she was curious. "If it's not too much trouble."

One of the guards let out a short sigh before raising her voice again. " _And_ Aerith Gainsborough, Your Majesty."

Zack led the way inside, Cloud bringing up the rear, before the doors closed behind them with a very final sound. As they walked along the crimson carpet, Aerith glanced around the hall, trying not to stumble over her own feet. This place was everything she had ever imagined the heart of Lucis would be: cold, lofty, and full of morning sunlight.

Aerith had no idea why she was so surprised to find King Regis sitting the throne, or Clarus standing at his right hand. They were, after all, the king and his Shield. Perhaps it was because the two of them had always struck her as legendary figures, not living breathing humans like herself. Even now, solemn and motionless, they looked more like something out of a painting than real people.

Nobody told them to stop, but Zack, Cloud, and Aerith all came to a halt at the foot of the first flight of stairs. It just seemed like the thing to do.

"Aerith Gainsborough," began King Regis, smiling kindly, though her heart almost stopped as she was the first to be acknowledged. "Noctis has not told me much about you, but Ignis has. I know you have been looking after my son for some years, and for that, I must thank you."

Aerith blinked. Since when had she been looking after Noct—or was he just referring to her friendship? "I-it was nothing, Your Majesty."

King Regis nodded to acknowledge her response, but then swept on to Zack and Cloud. "Now, as for you two, Clarus has briefed me on your situation based on what you told him last night, and has given me a summary of your accomplishments. He tells me that the two of you have important information, which you have refused to disclose to anyone other than myself." He paused to glance back at Aerith. "And this young lady, judging by her presence here."

Zack nodded, but his eyes were wary. "Okay, you know we're not affiliated with Niflheim anymore, right? Me and… I mean, Cloud and I?"

"That much has been made clear to me, yes," said King Regis.

"Good," said Zack, letting out a short breath of relief. "Because if you think either of us are in on this, you're going to ask us a lot of questions we can't answer. But anyway, well, according to the Turks—er, the secret service—the Empire is planning to destroy Insomnia."

Aerith turned her head to stare at him, and King Regis leaned forward in his throne. "Destroy the Crown City?"

Zack nodded. "They've been working on a device to break the Wall. I don't know if or how it works, but if they smuggle it into the Citadel somehow, it'll all be over. Without the Wall, the Crown City is just a city like any other, and you know how many of those they've already leveled."

"How did  _you_ reach Insomnia?" asked King Regis, sitting back again. "Not that I suspect you of aiding and abetting, but if there has been any kind of security breach…"

Zack shook his head. "Cloud and I just hitched a ride with Cindy Aurum. Cid's granddaughter, out at Hammerhead. Cid said he knew you, so he could get us in. I don't think that counts as a 'security breach'."

King Regis relaxed slightly, inclining his head, though his expression remained inscrutable. "I see. So Cid trusts you, then. Do you know any details concerning the Empire's plan, or simply their intention?"

"The plan was still in the works by the time we left the Empire, but I know the gist of it," said Zack, and Cloud closed his eyes as if to concentrate on his explanation. "They're going to offer a treaty. I don't know what they're gonna put in it, but one of the conditions will be signing it here in the Citadel. Then they'll find some way to provoke you into making the first move, and use it as an excuse to initiate hostilities and take over."

Clarus tensed, exchanging a glance with the king. "And that's all you know?"

"That's all we know," said Zack. "In fact, a lot of this is news to Cloud. I'm sure you know why."

King Regis nodded distractedly. "This is troubling news indeed," he murmured, quietly enough that Aerith could barely hear him, but raised his voice again to address Zack and Cloud once more. "Let me ask you something. What do you propose I do in response to this threat?"

Zack frowned, crossing his arms. "With all due respect, Your Majesty, I have no clue. I only came here to warn you."

But Cloud shook his head unexpectedly, and spoke up. "The Empire's gonna notice if everyone in Insomnia evacuates," he said, his voice surprisingly steady for someone with such a nervous temperament. "If you want your people to live, I'd surrender. Crown City, Crystal, all of it."

"Cloud," hissed Zack, nudging him none too gently, and he almost staggered. "We can't just waltz into Lucis and tell the king to give up!"

"Who's giving up?" asked Cloud, unusually defiant; his eyes positively smoldered with blue fire. "Seems easier to take it all back later than try and hold onto it now. And it's better for a small group of people to risk their lives instead of everyone." He folded his arms, as though just now remembering that he should be more self-conscious, and glanced aside. "Just saying."

Aerith nodded thoughtfully. Cloud did have a point. " _Cosmogony_ says only the Chosen King can use the Crystal, anyway," she said, and all eyes turned to her. "Even if the Empire seizes it, they can't use it. Noct will be able to seize it right back again someday."

King Regis's gaze turned cold, and Aerith shivered in the sudden chill, but Zack was the one to speak. "I'm against it," he said, shaking his head vehemently. "Even if Noct—uh, Prince Noctis—is the only one who can use the Crystal the way it's  _supposed_ to be used, doesn't _Cosmogony_ also say it's the kings' job to protect it? If it needs protecting, that means there might be someone or something out there that can hurt it. Or somehow use it to hurt other people."

"Unfortunately, that is true," said King Regis, inclining his head. "Even the line of Lucis is unaware of the Crystal's full potential, but it is said to be a gateway between worlds. There is no telling what the Empire might do, even if they can only harness a fraction of its power, and I am unwilling to take that chance."

"I don't like it either," said Cloud, a surprisingly stubborn glint remaining in his eyes. Whatever ember had been ignited in his soul, it had yet to die. "But if you just let everything unfold, Insomnia's gonna become a warzone, and the Empire's _still_ gonna end up with the Crystal. Only difference is that people die. Lots of 'em."

There was a brief and extremely uncomfortable silence.

"Much as I would prefer not to admit it, Cloud is right," said Clarus. "Lucis has existed in a precarious balance since our youth, Your Majesty. It will be impossible to protect both the Crystal and our people for much longer. And now that we know that there is no chance of a genuinely peaceful resolution…"

He trailed off as King Regis let out a long breath. "Thank you, Clarus."

"There's still time," said Zack, curling his fingers into a resolute fist. "If you focus your efforts on forming some sort of resistance in the coming months, and then surrender, you should be able to strike back at the Empire sooner rather than later. That way, you'll minimize whatever damage they might do." He hesitated. "I know Lucis and Wutai have never gotten along, but they're not really fans of imperial occupation, either. Maybe you could do some sort of temporary alliance thing?"

"I'll take that into consideration," said King Regis, leaning forward once more. "But if we are to proceed any further along this path, I will need a solemn vow from each of you that you will say nothing to anyone of what we have discussed thus far, or what will be discussed in the days to come. I would also like an assurance of your complete cooperation in terms of strategizing. Effectively, I require an oath of loyalty to Lucis."

"Done and done," said Zack, almost before King Regis finished talking, and the king blinked a few times at his easy response. "I didn't come all this way to turn back now. I can't really escape being a soldier, so the least I can do is fight for the right side this time." He smiled, a little sadly. "I answer to you now, Your Majesty."

Cloud nodded once, firmly. "If it means putting the Empire down, I'll do anything you want."

"Thank you," said King Regis. "But discussing the fate of Lucis further can wait for the rest of the Council. For now, we should move on to more immediate matters." He looked questioningly between Zack and Cloud. "In light of the information you have brought me today, it is in all our best interests for me to keep the two of you close. If what Clarus tells me is true, your living arrangements are not yet fixed, correct?"

"Yeah," said Zack. "Aerith let us crash at her house last night, but we don't want to overstay our welcome."

"I see," said King Regis, glancing at Aerith, and she started as their eyes met. She'd been so caught up in the fate of her country that she'd almost forgotten about her individual existence. "And you hadn't even known them a full day yet? Some might call that kind of trust foolish."

"They have," said Aerith awkwardly, feeling rather small. "But I could tell Zack and Cloud weren't our enemies. I can't explain why, but…"

King Regis smiled as Aerith trailed off. "I think more people could benefit from your open kindness," he said, and she turned slightly red at the praise. "But even with your vote of confidence, and their promises, I cannot personally take two young men under my wing with no questions asked—especially if they used to be Niflheim soldiers. Any suggestions, Clarus?"

Judging by the knowing look between them, this part of the conversation was scripted. "Depending on the extent of your belief in this young lady, you might consider making them honorary members of the Crownsguard," said Clarus. "As members of the Crownsguard themselves, Ignis and my son can be authorized to  _train_ them. If Cor agrees, of course."

"Does this Crownsguard have barracks?" asked Zack, crossing his arms. "I don't care what you call us, but we're gonna need somewhere to sleep."

To Aerith's astonishment, and apparently Clarus's as well, King Regis laughed. "You _are_ a bold one. I think Aerith is right to trust you. Men who speak their minds so readily in the presence of kings are rarely untrustworthy."

"Uh… thanks?"

"The Crownsguard does have barracks, but outsiders such as yourselves will raise questions," continued King Regis. "It will be safer to put you up temporarily in one of the cheap apartment buildings used by some members of the Kingsglaive. I regret to say that it is not in the best part of town, but it should be a suitable place to stay for now."

As King Regis spoke, he nodded to Clarus, who took his leave silently. "Is that really okay?" asked Zack, frowning as he watched the Shield of the King depart. "We don't have any money, and I can't just ask you to cover for us. I could always try to land a job, but Cloud really shouldn't be working yet, and…"

"The information you have given us, as well as that you have yet to give, is well worth the cost of a few months' rent at least," interrupted King Regis. "But if you are so concerned about paying me back, you can consider this a loan, to be repaid once you help Lucis attain true peace."

"Right," said Zack, rubbing the back of his neck. "The information we have yet to give, huh? I guess you _would_ want a few more details, direct from the source."

"Everything you know about the Empire would be best, however trivial," said King Regis. "Preferably starting tomorrow. I trust neither of you have prior engagements?"

Zack and Cloud shook their heads mutely, the former tossing a somewhat regretful glance in Aerith's direction. This did not escape the king's notice, judging by the fact that he almost smiled, but he sobered again so quickly that Aerith might have imagined that shift in expression.

"As for you, Aerith," said King Regis, and she braced herself. "I hear that, in response to Cloud's apparent illness, you have manifested powers similar to those of the Oracle."

"Th-that's right, Your Majesty," said Aerith, unable to meet King Regis's searching eyes. "But it only happened the one time. I can't guarantee that it'll happen again."

"Nothing is a guarantee in times like these," said King Regis. "If you are simply uncertain, I could send you out of Insomnia with one of the Kingsglaive to ascertain your healing abilities. But if you are afraid…" He paused, evaluating Aerith's expression. "I have no wish to force you to embrace a duty you did not choose, and could not have foreseen. Unfortunately, it may be that circumstances eventually override your own wishes."

Aerith's breath caught, and she opened her mouth, but could not ask whether King Regis was going to order her away from the Crown City. Perhaps she didn't really want to hear it. How could she leave her home for the first time to travel a kingdom she barely knew? How could she heal the afflicted with little faith and less training?

"Mind that I did say _eventually,"_ said King Regis kindly, reading Aerith's expression. "As of now, there is no need for me to make this an order. Until and unless the situation takes a turn for the worse, you may act as you see fit." The twinkle in his clear eyes vanished, along with Aerith's sense of relief. "But I must ask you to consider taking up the role of your own volition, for the sake of Lucis."

"I… I will, Your Majesty," said Aerith, curtsying. "Thank you."

"Nyx Ulric, Your Majesty," announced the guard, just as Aerith straightened up, and she turned to find the doors opening again.  _The_ Nyx Ulric? As in, the so-called hero of the Kingsglaive?

It must be. A man in a Kingsglaive uniform strode in as if accustomed to it, blue eyes flicking between Zack and Aerith and Cloud's faces in guarded surprise as he approached. His hair was shaven at the sides and grown out just past his shoulder, not unlike Gladio's hairstyle (though Gladio might not have looked as good with little braids).

The man walked with enough authority that Aerith, Zack, and Cloud moved aside to accommodate him as he reached the foot of the first flight of stairs. He sank into a brief kneeling bow, then looked up at the king without so much as another glance at any of the others. "You summoned me, Your Majesty?"

"Nyx Ulric," greeted King Regis. "Thank you for your quick response. Before I begin, I would like to confirm with you that everything I am about to say is to remain within these walls." He eyed the closed doors as he spoke, almost as if expecting to see eavesdroppers on the other side of it.

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"Very well," said King Regis, gesturing to Zack and Cloud in turn. "These two young men, Zack Fair and Cloud Strife, have come forward with confidential information involving the Empire. They will be working closely with the Council in the coming days in an attempt to avert a war."

"Are they civilians?"

King Regis hesitated, but shook his head. "Both of them were previously in the Niflheim Army, but have taken no Lucian lives. They are capable soldiers, and are willing to fight for Lucis if need be, though I dare to hope that will not be necessary. In the meantime, they will be made honorary members of the Crownsguard so that their presence around me will be sanctioned."

Nyx bowed his head, staring fixedly at the ground before him. "With all due respect, Your Majesty, are you sure?"

"Your concern is understandable, and even appreciated," said King Regis. "However, take care not to let it become skepticism. You will have ample opportunity to observe their behavior, and see why I have such faith in them, over time." At his reassurance, Nyx straightened up again. "Zack and Cloud are currently in need of a place to stay. To that end, Clarus and I have elected to put them up in your apartment building."

"Duly noted," said Nyx, glancing over at Aerith. "If I might ask, what does this young lady have to do with this?"

"This is my son's friend, Aerith Gainsborough," said King Regis, and Nyx bowed to her. "She is the one who first found and trusted these two, and helped them establish contact with me. For reasons I cannot disclose at present, she may also become an asset to Lucis. Please consider her their friend and confidante."

Nyx nodded. "I'll make sure they're all taken care of."

"Good," said King Regis, giving a short exhalation. "Now, as for your exact orders… given the complexity of the situation, I thought it best that Zack and Cloud have an ally nearby. You are to contact me if there is any suspicion or unrest because of their presence and, if necessary, to defend them. However, your job does _not_ extend to surveillance. Acting as a bodyguard, for instance, would draw unnecessary attention."

Aerith smiled at the very idea of someone like Zack needing a bodyguard, and the same thing seemed to have occurred to Cloud, judging by the very faint smirk overtaking his incredulity. Even Nyx seemed somewhat amused (or perhaps _be_ mused) as he responded, "Understood, Your Majesty."

"Aerith," said King Regis, and she looked up. "I'm afraid I may have to ask you to let Zack and Cloud stay with you one more night. Arranging for them to join the Crownsguard and move into a specific apartment will be made sometime today, but even a king's decrees are not instantaneous." He smiled, but there was something a little too knowing about it. "Alternatively, I can arrange for them to stay in a hotel… but under the circumstances, I believe it's better for them to be among friends."

"I'd be happy to let them stay one more night, Your Majesty," said Aerith. Not that she could refuse a royal request, but she wouldn't want to anyway. Not when Zack was grinning at her like that, and even Cloud wore a small smile of obvious relief.

"I'm glad to hear it," said King Regis. "I will send word to each of you when the time comes to take any kind of action. Until then, you may go about your business as usual, whatever that may entail." He waved a hand. "Thank you for your time and honesty. All of you are dismissed."

Nyx bowed and departed without a word, and only one curious glance back at Zack and Cloud. He had come and gone from this place many times before, after all, and the Kingsglaive probably kept their resident hero busy. "Thank you so much, Your Majesty," said Zack, bowing low. "We won't let you down. I swear on my honor as SOL—as a soldier."

"Thank you," said Aerith, adding her own voice to the chorus of gratitude. Cloud's bow was shallower, and his sentiment much quieter, but the glimmer in his eyes was genuine. Aerith found herself studying his softness, such a contrast to his spiky appearance and taciturn attitude. She may have felt as though she had gotten a good grasp of Zack's character over the last day or so, but Cloud… not so much. She looked forward to learning more about him.

"You're quite welcome," said King Regis, smiling his amusement, and drew Aerith out of her thoughts. "But I _do_ have some work to do for your sake, you know. Go have some lunch—that's an order."

"With pleasure, Your Majesty!" called Zack, already escorting Cloud from the hall.

Aerith followed in a hurry, almost giddy. Their audience had gone unbelievably well; they and their concerns were all taken seriously, and their only real _order_ had been to eat something. Her circumstances as a surprise healer didn't feel quite so hopeless now that she knew she wouldn't be expected to drop everything and leave the city (at least not yet), and the war Zack and Cloud had talked about seemed so far away.

Even so, Aerith couldn't help but be worried about them, already willing to fight—and more than able. Truth be told, she was still a little frightened of how capable in battle they really were. She supposed it was to be expected when they'd been in the army, but to think about the number of lives they must have ended, even if not Lucian or even human… it was scary. And, to her confusion, her anxiety seemed as much for their sake as for their enemies'.

But as she watched Zack realizing he'd been pushing on doors that were meant to be pulled open, and Cloud shaking his head at his mistake, and found herself mirroring the grin they exchanged, Aerith figured that maybe they'd be fine after all.


	8. Stealth Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Prompto apprehends a pair of trespassers—while trespassing.

As it turned out, getting into the Citadel had been the easy part. The hard part was getting  _out_.

To be fair, it'd be a lot easier if Prompto hadn't inadvertently let himself get roped into breaking a few laws. He'd only intended to get Iris to take him inside so he could meet Aerith in the waiting area after the audience. Unfortunately, Gladio's stubborn little sister had other suggestions, such as 'why don't we wait in the library instead'. By which she'd apparently meant pressing on a book in one of the shelves to reveal that it was actually a door.

Prompto, of course, had been floored—almost literally. Sure, the Citadel was ancient, but secret passageways weren't supposed to be  _real_. They were way too cool to be anything other than legends. (Noct must have shown this place to Iris personally at some point. Prompto wished he wasn't so envious.)

"You _do_ wanna hear what they're saying, right?"

Coming back to himself, Prompto had swallowed a _hell yeah_  and glanced around. "Aren't you worried about getting in trouble?"

Iris had shaken her head. "Can't get in trouble if no one finds out." She'd started on her way then, so Prompto hadn't had much of a choice but to follow her and let the book-shelf door swing shut. "Besides, I'm the Shield's daughter, so I outrank you. If anyone hears about this, we can say you're just following my orders, or keeping me safe, or something like that."

"Didn't your dad ever tell you it's not polite to eavesdrop?"

"My dad never tells me _anything_ , and that's why I learned how to eavesdrop in the first place," Iris had said, taking out her phone to use as a flashlight, and Prompto did the same. "But I had to do so much sneaking around to avoid Jared last night, I barely heard anything. I'm worried about what King Regis will say about Aerith, and I wanna know how she got mixed up with those Zack and Cloud guys."

Maybe his own curiosity had muddied the waters, but Prompto hadn't had the heart or words to explain exactly _how_ bad an idea this was. Even if he'd been able to tell Iris that much, he could never have answered all her questions to her satisfaction. Better to let her find out, and hope for the best.

…Well, Iris had found out. So had Prompto. Over the course of that audience, they'd heard everything they'd ever wanted to know, and then some. Even with Iris missing Zack and Cloud's exact backstory, the message they brought was crystal clear: Lucis was standing on the brink of war, this time involving the Crown City itself. And they might never have known it, if not for the series of circumstances that brought a couple soldiers to Insomnia.

Even knowing that the Crown City wouldn't be attacked the very next day, the prospects of losing everything made Prompto's blood run cold. Iris must have felt the same way, since her eyes had gone glassy, and she looked lost enough that Prompto found himself. He'd been through a lot already, all things considered—and he was used to wrestling with big issues on his own—but _she_ was much too young to feel as thoroughly defeated as she looked.

"Hey," said Prompto, resting a hand on Iris's shoulder. "It'll be okay. They'll…  _we'll_ think of something." Only as he spoke did he realize exactly how knotted up his guts were, just from listening in, but he couldn't unknot them. Not while they still stood down here in the darkness and quiet, where the very air felt as oppressive as the Empire's more abstract threat.

Iris shook her head. "I had no idea things were this bad."

"Neither did I," said Prompto. "I probably should've guessed, though. Zack kept mentioning that whatever they had to say, it was something only the king should hear. If it was _good_ news, he could've told any…" But he faltered as he spoke, the last couple syllables dropping off. Were those… footsteps?

Iris opened her mouth, frowning at his shift in tone, but Prompto held up a hand to silence her and flicked off his phone's flashlight for good measure. Yeah, someone was definitely coming; the sound was faint, but very distinctive.

"What should we do?" whispered Iris, eyes wide, and turned off her light as well. This was no longer a simple matter of overhearing a private conversation; this was a matter of national security. Even Clarus's title probably wouldn't get her out of this one, to say nothing of Prompto.

Prompto bit his lip, considering his options. If he was hearing right, those footsteps seemed to be coming from the opposite direction from which they had come. Besides that, there only seemed to be a couple people, and they didn't seem to be in much of a hurry. Nobody was barking orders or sounding any alarms, and there was no commotion upstairs.

On the plus side, that meant these people probably weren't pursuing them. On the minus side, that meant whoever was down here might be trespassing as well. And given exactly  _how_ sensitive that discussion had been…

"You go back and find Aerith," said Prompto quietly. "I may not get feelings like she does, but I have a hunch that these people might be breaking some rules, too. And if anyone _else_ heard all that, I think someone upstairs should know about it."

Iris hesitated, but then clicked on her flashlight again and nodded once. "Be safe."

"You too."

As Iris's quick footsteps retreated, her light disappeared around the corner, and Prompto slid into a conveniently person-sized recess in the wall. Among his friends, he was probably the best at stealth, and he could hold his breath longer than almost anyone he knew. Still, he had never imagined his title as reigning champion of hide-and-seek would come in handy in a situation like this.

"Reno," said a baritone voice, low and husky and quiet enough that Prompto could barely hear it. "You sure there's nobody else down here?"

"Do you even _see_ this place?" asked whoever Reno was, his tenor voice somehow both lax and impatient.

"No."

"Well, maybe you would if you'd take those damn sunglasses off," said Reno. "We're _under-freaking-ground_ , Rude. But anyway, this place is kind of a wreck, so I don't think much of anyone comes down here. Also, I'm pretty sure we were just hearing voices from upstairs."

Silence.

"I haven't heard anything that sounded like a royal audience, though," continued Reno. "Or whatever it was the general said we should keep an ear out for. Paranoid bastard's gotta know the king's gonna spill everything to him personally anyway, so why'd he bother sending us to listen in?"

The second voice spoke again; that must have been Rude. "I don't know."

More distant voices, and Prompto tensed. Sure enough, these people weren't supposed to be here, judging by the indistinct shouts now echoing around the corridors. Thankfully, they seemed to be coming from the same direction as Reno and Rude, but it might not be long before Prompto's way out was blocked, too. Time was short: he needed to get out of here.

And the same thing appeared to have occurred to Reno, as his voice broke up in the rhythm of a quicker stride. "Shit—you don't think this is a trap, do you?"

Prompto hesitated, panic freezing his mind as the hallway lightened with the strangers' swift approach. He should have tried to run ahead of them, but at this point, it was too late. They were already close enough that they'd probably see him, and that could spell all kinds of trouble. Waiting for them to pass didn't seem like any better of an idea, since he was basically hiding in plain sight. The most he could do was pray Leviathan would keep him hidden from their eyes.

Too bad Prompto wasn't in the habit of praying, because they spotted him almost instantly.

It only took another few seconds for them to catch up with him, and another few after that for them to stop. But not before Reno did a double take, skidded to a halt, backed up, shined his flashlight right in Prompto's face, and said, "Holy hell, it's _Cloud_."

That brought up more than a few questions, most of them beginning with 'how in the name of the Six', but now was not the time to ask them. More importantly, in light of Reno and Rude's incredulity and maybe a little bit of relief, Cloud was not their enemy. "H-hey," said Prompto, choosing not to point out that he was not, in fact, Cloud. "I think… I can get us out of here."

"Lead the way," said Rude, and Prompto obeyed.

* * *

A few minutes, a couple heart attacks, and only one wrong turn later, the three of them arrived safely back at the library.

"So, uh," said Prompto, as they shut the bookshelf-door behind them. "What are you doing here, anyway?" They may not have a lot of time to talk, but he still wasn't totally sure about whether he'd inadvertently helped out a pair of criminals. The fact that they had some sort of connection to Cloud and didn't consider him an enemy was a good sign, but one could never really tell these days.

"Long story, kid," said Reno, moving to the library door and looking both ways along with Rude. "Turk business. Where's Zack, or did you two break up?"

"He just had an audience with the king," said Prompto, preoccupied with the fact that someone like Reno was apparently in Niflheim's secret service. Now that he had time to take in their appearances, he could see that he was a lanky redhead with goggles on his forehead, red marks near his eyes, and no concept of how to wear a suit. Rude, by contrast, was a tall and muscular man with sunglasses, permanent frown lines, and an intimidating aura perfectly suited to some sort of special operative.

"Zack landed a royal appointment?" asked Reno, blinking a few times. "That must've been why we were supposed to listen in. Too bad that place is like a maze, or we might not have missed it."

Only as Reno mentioned 'listening in' did Prompto realize that he _probably_ shouldn't be seen with these people, and started trying to formulate a plan of escape, but it was too late. Rude scowled, not that Prompto could really tell, and rested a heavy hand on his shoulder to hold him in place. "Hold on. Did Cloud always have freckles?"

Distracted, Reno peered at Prompto's face, then narrowed his eyes. "Don't think so. And his hair was kinda spiky, not… whatever that is." He waved his hand vaguely to indicate Prompto's hairstyle, then shook his head in agitation. "Look, we don't have time to deal with this when gods-know-who are on our tail for gods-know-why. Let's just get out of here!"

"Too late," said Rude, readjusting his leather gloves. "Listen." Silence for a moment, but for the sound of more approaching footsteps, and Prompto grimaced. He had already learned to hate that sound.

Reno muttered something unintelligible under his breath. "Doesn't sound like there are very many of them yet. Think we could take 'em, or should we just run?"

Rude glanced around the corner briefly. "Two females, both young civilians. But we could knock 'em out or take 'em hostage if we have to."

"Wait, are we talking 'little girl' young, or 'dateable' young?" asked Reno, frowning. "Just so I know what I'm getting into."

"Neither," said Prompto, moving cautiously forward to take a peek into the hallway. Sure enough… "Looks like we got lucky, because those are my friends. But Iris isn't a little girl, and like hell am I letting either of you date Aerith."

As Prompto cautiously moved the rest of the way into view, Aerith let out a soft utterance and sprinted forward to hug him tightly. Iris hung back a little, but relief shone in her eyes. "I'm so glad you're safe," she started saying, but a small gasp cut her off as she caught sight of Reno and Rude.

"Hey, Prompto," said Aerith, glancing between the bewildered Turks as she finally let Prompto breathe again. "New friends of yours?"

Prompto rolled his eyes as she quoted him from yesterday. (Gods, was it  _seriously_  just yesterday?) "You could say that," he said, quoting her right back, and gestured for her and Iris to come into the library. They'd only draw attention if they kept hanging out in the doorway. "They know Zack and Cloud somehow, actually. Thing is, I'm pretty sure they're not supposed to be here."

"Iris did say something about that," said Aerith. "But she made it sound a lot more life-or-death than it apparently is. Where's security?"

"I don't know," said Iris, tilting her head. "They're not doing such a great job of searching for them, if they haven't even sounded an alarm yet."

"Huh," said Reno, looking as though he had just realized something. "Hey, Rude, you don't think they're keeping it on the down-low because they're testing us or something? 'This is a drill, this is only a drill, if this were an actual manhunt it'd go something like—'"

"So, are you supposed to be here or not?" demanded Aerith, putting her hands on her hips.

"Yes and no," said Reno, looking vaguely uncomfortable. "Like I told not-Cloud here, we're here on Turk business. Classified."

"Don't waste my time," said Aerith. "The king literally ordered me and Zack and Cloud to have some lunch, so even if you're not in trouble, I can  _get_ you in trouble for obstructing a royal decree. Do you work for Niflheim?"

"No, we workfor the Turks."

Aerith heaved a sigh. "Look, I'm not the one who may or may not be arrested if security shows up. You can keep dodging questions all day if you want, but I can just keep asking them. It doesn't matter to me."

"If you won't talk to us, would you at least talk to Zack and Cloud?" asked Prompto, realizing that he'd probably have to play the good cop to Aerith's bad if they were going to get anywhere. You wouldn't think a girl in a floral sundress and hair ribbon could be so intimidating. "They're back in the waiting area."

Reno and Rude exchanged a glance. "Could you bring them back here?" asked Rude.

"Nope," said Aerith. "You two are coming with us. If you're supposed to be here, you don't have anything to worry about. And if you're not… well, it's not like you've given me much of a reason to care, have you? I don't even know your names yet."

"Harsh, Aerith," said Prompto, taken aback despite himself. Not that he really disagreed, under the circumstances, but this was a pretty stark contrast from her usual nice-sweet-flower-girl image. "Didn't you take in Zack and Cloud out of the goodness of your heart just yesterday?"

Aerith sighed in exasperation. "Finding a couple guys asleep in a flowerbed is a _little_ different than finding a couple mysterious intruders in the Citadel."

"She has a point," said Rude unexpectedly. "He's Reno. I'm Rude."

"But you're the _polite_ one," said Iris, frowning. "How's that work?"

Reno let out a long breath. "Okay, fine," he said, holding up his hands briefly in a gesture of surrender. "We were invited here to take care of something, but the guy who invited us might've changed his mind partway through the mission. Which means that yeah, we _were_ supposed to be here, but probably not anymore. Honestly, we don't have a clue what's going on. I'd just rather not get caught either way."

Prompto frowned. Why would anyone in the Citadel ask the Niffs to do something for them? Especially the Turks? That was _beyond_ suspicious, especially if one of the higher-ups had been the one to made the request. What business could any loyal Lucian have with Niflheim's intelligence agency…? (Then again, Prompto wasn't sure he really wanted to know, given the full extent of the tension between nations.)

Aerith nodded slowly, first distracted, then decisive. "Okay," she said, taking Iris's arm. "Wait here. You keep an eye on them, Prompto. I'm going to find Zack and Cloud." That was the only indication that she'd accepted their story as worthwhile before she strode away, half-dragging the protesting Iris along behind her.

"So  _she's_ the one who took those guys in," muttered Reno, sauntering over to the nearest table and plopping himself unceremoniously in a chair. Not that Prompto had ever met any secret agents, but he had to be the most unprofessional secret agent imaginable. "Did you hear anything about that, Rude?"

Rude cleared his throat, with what might have been a pointed glance at Prompto from behind his sunglasses, and leaned against the bookshelf next to Reno. "I don't think everyone here needs to know."

"Guess not," said Reno, shaking his head. "Sorry, kid. Rude's right. The less anyone knows, the better. And I'm not just saying that because my life's on the line, or anything." But if his somewhat sheepish expression was anything to go by, Prompto couldn't help but think that this wasn't quite true.

"You're calling me a kid?" asked Prompto. Not that he was really one to talk, since he was as skilled with a gun as any soldier, but he at least was still an amateur. Reno, on the other hand, looked a little young to be a full-blown spy on a mission in another country. "How old are you?"

"Older than you," said Reno dismissively. "Which means _you're_ a kid. I don't make the rules." Rude gave a barely audible sigh, and Prompto opened his mouth to ask Reno who really sounded like the kid here, but the buzzing of his phone cut him off before he started.

> **[10:02] Aerith:** Zax says if askd r&r here 4 him.

It was times like these Prompto wished Aerith had a better phone, or at least a better keyboard. "Heads-up—Aerith says if anyone asks, you're here because of Zack," said Prompto quietly. "Looks like he might be trying to give you an alibi. But…" He squinted at Aerith's message again. "She's kind of implying that you're  _going_ to be asked, so that means someone might be escorting them."

"Thanks," said Reno, looking surprised. "What do you know? Maybe he can be useful every once in awhile, after all."

Prompto wasn't sure whether he was talking about him or Zack, but shook his head. "Thank Aerith, when you have the chance." Zack might've been the one to come up with the excuse, but Aerith had certainly been the one to tell him what was going on. Possibly behind a Citadel official's back. Besides, she never forgot a favor, whether one she owed… or one someone else owed her. Growing up on the outskirts of Insomnia, counting blessings (and _potential_ blessings) was basically a survival skill.

It didn't take much longer for Aerith, Zack, and Cloud to arrive. They'd had the good sense to leave Iris behind, for which Prompto took a moment to thank the gods. Of course, given everything she'd already heard, she might have even opted out of hearing more, herself. The important thing was that she wasn't going to get embroiled in this any more than she already was.

But really, what caught Prompto's attention the most was the female Glaive leading the group.

Judging by the skintight uniform and the fact that she appeared to be unarmed, she was in the black mage division. Of course, that didn't mean she wasn't dangerous, given that glint in her deep brown eyes. Prompto couldn't quite meet them, but they seemed to be the same shade as her hair, which was pinned back in a beautifully haphazard updo.

"Hey there," greeted the Glaive, striding right past Prompto to address Reno and Rude, and cracked her knuckles. "I'm Crowe, and you two are under arrest." And _Prompto_ was just a little bit in love.


	9. Lending a Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the weather is Cloud-y with a chance of backstory, at least in the moments before he turns the questions on Aerith instead.

There was a moment of silence as everyone let the situation sink in.

Reno and Rude got over their shock as quickly as one might expect of a pair of special operatives, but the same could not be said for Zack and Cloud. From the looks of things, no one was even breathing—although Prompto had stopped for a somewhat different reason. Taking a few cautious steps to his side, Aerith reached out to tap his slack jaw shut, and he jumped.

Whether it was that soft click or something else that stirred Zack out of his thoughts, Aerith didn't know, but he was the first to speak. "Just… wait a minute, Crowe," he said, and all eyes turned to him, some more reluctantly than others. "I can't explain everything, because I don't know everything, but I do know these guys are part of the reason Cloud and I got out of the Empire alive. Do you think you could at least hear 'em out?"

"That's up to Captain Drautos," said Crowe, narrowing her eyes. "I know the king trusts you, but that doesn't mean we have to trust  _them_. A few of the Kingsglaive were sent out on a high-priority retrieval mission, so I'd say they're in pretty big trouble."

"But not high-priority enough to set off any alarms," pointed out Aerith. "You'd never know anyone's looking for intruders."

Crowe tossed a glance at her over her shoulder. "The captain told us their location had been pinpointed to somewhere in the tunnels, so there wasn't really a need to cause a panic over it. He stationed me with these two." She indicated Zack and Cloud with a thumb. "Said something about how if the spies escaped the passageway, they'd probably try to rendezvous. Looks like he was right."

"Hey, watch it," said Reno crossly, sizing up Crowe. "We're not spies, we're Turks. Get it straight."

"I don't care what you are. You're breaking and entering, and Captain Drautos has something to say about that." Crowe took both Reno and Rude by the forearms. "Now, come with me if you know what's good for you." Zack looked vaguely uncomfortable, but knew better than to protest. So did Rude, rising without a struggle, but Reno yanked his arm from Crowe's grasp.

"I couldn't care less about your stupid state secrets," snapped Reno, straightening out his suit jacket (with no visible effect). "If it were up to _me_ , I wouldn't have even bothered leaving the Empire, but…" He cut himself off, shaking his head impatiently. "Look, lady. Long story short, our literal job is to keep tabs on those two. And we just found them, so mission accomplished. Can we go home now?"

" _No_ ," said Crowe, and gestured sharply for Reno to accompany her. His unwillingness could not be more clear, but after one more resentful pause and a reluctant nod from Rude, he obeyed. However, rather than allow Crowe to take his arm again, he opted to slink ahead of them out the door. She followed at a brisk pace, bringing Rude with her. Evidently, as long as she had his partner in her custody, she trusted him not to make a break for it.

Somehow, Aerith got the same feeling, but she still felt the strangest impulse to protest. Maybe she had just gotten too entitled, feeling like she had the right to know everything now that Zack and Cloud had entrusted her with their top-secret information. Or maybe it was just her soft side acting up again to balance out her earlier bluff. Distrusting Reno and Rude didn't mean she wanted any harm to come to them, and that seemed all too likely in a situation this delicate.

But no matter the cause of Aerith's objections, Zack beat her to voicing them. "Hold on, I'm coming with you," he called, already striding after them. "Cloud, you wait here with Aerith."

And with that, he was gone. From the looks of things, Cloud had neither the time nor the inclination to argue, and hung back as ordered. Aerith half expected Prompto to protest that he had not been acknowledged as well, but he still hadn't moved. To the casual observer, he might be lost in thought, but she knew what that blank look meant on _him_.

Sure enough, upon tracing Prompto's gaze, Aerith found it directed at the place Crowe had disappeared from his sight. "Better go get some tissue for that nosebleed, Prompto," said Aerith, struggling valiantly not to laugh, and he snapped back into himself at the sound of his name. "I think I saw a box back in the waiting room. And Iris did say to let her know what's going on."

"R-right," said Prompto, taking the hint, and made to leave. However, as he reached the doorway, he turned to look back at Aerith and Cloud with a frown of some confusion. "Wait, you two aren't coming?"

Aerith could no longer stifle a giggle. He must have it bad, if he didn't even hear that. "Zack told us to wait here. We'll come find you once things are settled."

"Right," said Prompto again, looking sheepish, and departed in a hurry.

Only after Prompto left did Cloud shake his head, as if in exasperation, but Aerith thought he might have been on the verge of a smile. Ordinarily, she might have defended or at least explained Prompto's actions—especially since, in her humble opinion, his awe was justified this time—but seeing Cloud's features soften like that, she decided to let it slide for once. "I guess we'd better sit down."

"Guess so," said Cloud, taking Rude's seat, and Aerith took Reno's.

They sat in silence for some time. Aerith tried not to spend too long staring at Cloud, but couldn't help studying his contemplative countenance anyway, in an attempt to get a feel for his personality. After all, she still knew very little about him, and there wasn't a lot she could guess with any kind of accuracy. He seemed the type to unfold slowly like a flower instead of bursting open all at once like a firework. Unlike Zack.

As the kind of person who called a great deal of attention to himself, intentionally or otherwise, Zack had already given Aerith a lot to work with. All flippancy, assumption-making, and bravado aside, he was also straightforward, sympathetic in every way, and much more capable than he appeared. Even his awkwardness came with a certain self-awareness. He was one of those rare people who seemed the same inside and out, as opposed to someone like Prompto.

Or Cloud, who remained largely enigmatic. Even with her gift of intuition (divine or otherwise), Aerith still couldn't quite tell who he was beneath his trauma. Having only awakened yesterday, he was probably still numb in a lot of ways. In all likelihood, it would take time for him to come to terms with everything that had happened, to say nothing of everything that  _might_ happen.

Which reminded Aerith of some more concrete concerns. "How are you feeling?" she asked, and Cloud almost jumped. Evidently, he had been deeper in thought than she anticipated. "Are there any lingering side effects from the plasmodia?"

Once Cloud got over being startled, he shrugged. "Don't think so. I feel… fine."

It was obvious from his tone that he was referring only to his physical condition. Mentally, it was likely too soon to tell how he felt, but it probably wasn't _good_. And Aerith wanted to help somehow. A hug might be too much, given that she was practically a stranger compared to Zack, but even a little physical reassurance had the potential to go a long way.

"May I?" asked Aerith, reaching carefully toward Cloud in an echo of their first encounter. "Just to make sure."

Cloud hesitated, but then nodded, resting his hand on the table between them. Aerith poked his wrist gently to relax him with some playfulness, then rested a few fingers on his skin, and finally laid her hand atop his. Nothing happened, as she expected, but it felt good to have some proof. And an excuse to execute her plan. "You're cold."

To Aerith's surprise, though Cloud's fingers twitched beneath hers, he did not withdraw his hand. Maybe he understood that she was trying to comfort him, in her own clumsy way. "Probably just bad circulation. Been that way since I was a kid." Aerith could only nod uncertainly in response. She was definitely curious about Cloud's childhood, but the past was something of a risky subject for now.

After a short silence, Cloud let out a long exhalation. He of all people had the right to sigh, but the sound was so forlorn that Aerith couldn't help asking, "Are you okay?"

"I-it's nothing," said Cloud, not meeting Aerith's eyes. "I was just… remembering someone. That's all."

After a brief pause, Aerith interwove their fingers. If Cloud was anything like her, he might need a physical reminder not to get stuck in his head. And besides, if this was somehow familiar, then maybe she could offer catharsis as well as comfort. "You don't have to tell me about them if you don't want. But I'm here to listen if you do."

There was a long enough pause that Aerith half thought Cloud wouldn't say anything else, but eventually, he spoke. "Just a girl I used to know. Tifa Lockhart. We weren't together," he added, but his tone was regretful enough that Aerith knew he would rather that were the case. (Zack had implied as much, anyway.) "I made her a promise before I left to join the army that I'd save her if she was ever in a bind. I… I broke that promise."

"Oh," was all Aerith could say, her grip on Cloud's hand tightening automatically. She couldn't even imagine the pain of losing a loved one or even just a friend, much less with so little closure. Between a promise left unfulfilled and a near-death experience that had resulted in a three-year coma, it was a miracle that Cloud wasn't still catatonic in a different way.

A frown flickered across Cloud's face, and he looked at Aerith more closely. "But I want to believe she's okay," he continued, and Aerith got the feeling he said it to comfort her as much as himself. "If Hojo saved me and Zack, someone else could have saved Tifa. She was—she was still alive, when I was holding her."

Aerith let out a sigh of relief, and Cloud looked faintly surprised that she should care. Was compassion that much of a rarity in his life? "I'm glad to hear that. I thought… well, based on what Zack said…" Aerith cut herself off, shaking her head. It would only make things worse to say it aloud. "It doesn't matter anymore. I'm sure you'll be able to see her again after all this is over."

Cloud did not look convinced. "Right."

"Come on," said Aerith, scooting closer. "If you want to hope, then  _hope_. It's not going to hurt any more than holding back, as long as it gives you something to fight for. I'm worried about the future, too, but it'd be worse if you and Zack hadn't come along when you did. And besides, we might have found some allies already." Assuming everything went well with Captain Drautos, of course.

"Allies?" echoed Cloud. "You mean the Turks?"

Aerith frowned. "They know you. Don't you know them?"

Cloud pursed his lips as though seriously considering how to answer, then shook his head. "Not the way Zack does. He was in SOLDIER, and I… wasn't. But I guess those two must've helped us while I was out, or something."

"Zack didn't tell you?"

"Zack isn't really the kind of guy who's good at explaining things," said Cloud, somewhat awkwardly. "Not like he's good at keeping secrets, either, but I think he forgets not everyone knows what he does. He'll answer questions, no problem, but that doesn't help much if you don't know what to ask."

"Prompto says I'm the same way," said Aerith, smiling reminiscently. It wasn't totally unconscious, either, since it worked so well with her guilty pleasure of shocking people. Prompto's face upon hearing of Cloud's former illness had been as priceless as she ever could have hoped.

Cloud leaned forward. "Speaking of, what's your story? You took us in, and I kind of owe you my life, but I barely know anything about you."

"Oh, you only owe me for crushing the flowers, and that's mostly Zack's fault for putting you there," said Aerith, waving her free hand. "But I don't think I have much of a story, because my life only started getting interesting once you two fell into it. I just live with my mom and sell flowers on the streets."

" _And_ you know the prince."

"Oh… yeah, I guess there is that." Curtsies aside, Aerith had a habit of forgetting that Noct was nobility. He just felt so _real_ compared to all the fairy tales she'd grown up with. "Mom wanted me to go to a good school, even if it was halfway across the city—especially since that was where Prompto was going. So I ended up in the same school system as him and Noct, even though I was a year ahead of them."

Cloud paused, as if something had just occurred to him. "Prompto called himself your brother, sort of."

"I'm not surprised," said Aerith. "We were put up for adoption at the same time, and from the same place. Mom practically raised him too, since _his_ parents only took him for the money. Said my biological mother might've taken him in, or something like that." She sighed, tapping her fingers restlessly between Cloud's. "I wasn't even a year old when she died, and I never knew who my father was. All I know is that I came with a name, but Prompto didn't."

When Cloud said nothing, Aerith glanced over at him to find him frowning slightly in a way that made her think he had fixated on a single point in her explanation, early on. "He's adopted, too?"

"Yeah," said Aerith, meeting Cloud's eyes to find them wary, curious, almost hopeful. Maybe he wasn't as good at hiding his emotions as she had initially thought. "Why? Do you think you're related, or something?"

Cloud looked slightly uncomfortable, perhaps that Aerith could see through him so easily, and turned his face away. "If we were, it'd make more sense for him to be adopted than for me to have secret relatives in Lucis. Since you guys aren't originally from Insomnia. That's all."

Aerith almost asked whether Cloud was implying that she and Prompto might have been born in the Empire, but thought better of it. Given that tensions between countries had never felt higher, reevaluating her nationality wasn't high on her priority list at the moment. Instead, she said, "But this  _is_ the only home we've ever known."

They lapsed into silence again, but it was soon broken by hurried footsteps. And, given that Cloud perked up at the noise, they must be friendly, or at least familiar. Had Zack really returned already…?

Apparently so. Almost as soon as the thought crossed Aerith's mind, he made his appearance in the doorway. "Well, that could've gone better," said Zack, letting out a long breath, and leaned against the wall. "I barely had a chance to lay out my case before that Drautos guy kicked me out. Said something about no third parties during interrogations."

"Shit," said Cloud quietly. "You think they'll be all right?"

"They're _Turks_ ," said Zack, as though that was a real answer, and Aerith smiled as he unknowingly validated Cloud's earlier criticism. "And we'll be back here tomorrow, anyway, so we can always ask after 'em then. Also…" He looked between Cloud and Aerith with an expression she couldn't decipher. "Did something happen while I was gone? What's with the hand-holding?"

Zack sounded equal parts curious and teasing, no hint of genuine jealousy or malice, but Cloud blushed to his ears and yanked his hand from beneath Aerith's. As he muttered some sort of excuse under his breath, she thought she caught the phrase 'it's not my fault'. Aerith couldn't help but laugh, and hope she didn't sound too derisive. Having grown up around the perpetually touch-starved Prompto, physical contact wasn't a big deal to her.

Clearly, Cloud felt otherwise, which meant the explanation fell to Aerith. "I wanted to see if Cloud still had any plague symptoms," she said, looking over at Zack again. "My healing powers didn't activate, so I'd say he's fine. After that, I guess we just lost track of time." Her smile widened. "But if it makes you feel better, I'd be glad to hold your hand too."

Aerith hadn't expected such a tiny thing to make much of a difference, but Zack positively beamed at her. "Sweet! What about a hug?"

"Slow down there, Casanova," said Aerith, tilting her head. "I only met you yesterday. We'll see." And besides, if Zack's reaction to hand-holding was any indication, she didn't want to cause his premature death. (Or anything else.)

"Guess that's better than a 'no'," said Zack, and his grin said he knew Aerith was joking. "Come on, let's go. I know we have a lot to worry about right now, but there's nothing we can do on an empty stomach. And the king ordered us to grab some lunch anyway, right?"

"Right," agreed Aerith, hurrying after Zack, and Cloud followed suit. "Let's stop by the waiting room first, though. I want to let Prompto know we're leaving." As she spoke, Aerith took Cloud by the arm, then jogged forward to catch up with Zack and slip her hand into his. His surprise was quickly overtaken by a smile as he gave her palm a gentle squeeze. Zack's hand was rough and warm and seemed made to be held, and Aerith found herself wondering what hers felt like to him.

Upon their arrival at the waiting room, Aerith found Prompto and Iris predictably sitting in silence, each looking at their phone. Iris, at least, seemed a bit more relaxed than when Aerith had left her. A significant part of that was probably because of Crowe's absence, and Prompto's explanation, but calm was calm. They'd need that in days to come if they wanted to deal with everything with a level head.

"Hey, Prompto, Iris," greeted Aerith, and they both looked up. "Zack and Cloud and I are going out to lunch. Tell the guys I say hi, okay?" From what little Iris had said, they'd heard pretty much the entire audience. It was basically a given that they'd brief the others as soon as possible, and that was the safest way Aerith could think of to say she approved.

"Will do," said Prompto, smiling in an unusually mischievous way.

Aerith almost asked what had gotten into him, but then realized that Iris had raised her eyebrows, and she was looking between Zack and Cloud a tad too knowingly. _Oh_. "Whoa there, Aerith. Is this a double date? Or, wait—a date and a half?"

"You must be the half, Cloud," said Zack, nudging Aerith so that she nudged Cloud.

"Leave me out of this," muttered Cloud. "I'm not interested."

"Don't worry," said Aerith, looking up at him, and tightened her grip on his arm to draw his attention. "I'll have to sit next to him, but _you_ can kick him under the table. I'll be counting on you if he starts getting too annoying."

As Aerith spoke, Cloud looked at her incredulously… and then chuckled, though he disguised it under a cough. Prompto looked stunned, as though he hadn't thought Cloud capable of laughter. Zack seemed similarly surprised and even more delighted, judging by his appreciative grin and the relief in his eyes.

But that didn't stop him from jokingly complaining anyway. "Hey, whose side are you on?" demanded Zack, pretending to be insulted. "You really think I'm gonna buy you lunch after this? You can pay your own way!"

Aerith only laughed. Given their circumstances, they all knew full well she'd still have to pay for all their meals anyway. Prompto grinned as well, but turned his eyes back to his phone. "Good luck with her, guys. You'll need it."

"No, we won't," said Zack firmly, and to Aerith's astonishment, Cloud nodded once in agreement. "She  _is_ good luck."

"Awww," cooed Iris, and Aerith scowled, but could not suppress her instinctive blush. "Have fun. You better me all about it later."

"I'll let Zack take care of that," said Aerith, making an effort to recover herself as quickly as possible. "I think it'll be more entertaining that way, since I'm sure he'll spin some tall tale about how he swept me off my feet. Maybe he'll say he's another prince, cursed to wander the land until some kindhearted stranger takes him off the streets."

"You never know," said Zack, and Aerith let go of Cloud to better turn around in the narrow hallway. She did not reach for his arm again once they started walking away, and he did not take it himself, but he stayed closer at hand than she expected. "It might be true. And Cloud can be my sidekick. All that's missing is a lovable animal companion…"

"There's always Pryna," called Prompto from behind them, by way of goodbye.

"Thanks," returned Zack over his shoulder, then looked down at Aerith, eyes sparkling in mirth. "Sorry, Aerith. I'm stealing your dog."

In the moment, Aerith couldn't think of an appropriately lighthearted comeback, so she simply smiled. Even after the tidings Zack and Cloud had brought earlier, and various Turk-related complications, their presence was still enough to offset her anxiety. Zack knew the importance of levity in dire situations, and Cloud had already found the courage to start opening up and moving forward. Things were looking up, even if it didn't seem like they _should_ be.

But if Aerith was their luck, then maybe it was fitting for them to be her hope.


	10. Welcome Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Prompto explains the current political situation to his friends (including the prince), then helps Aerith host a housewarming party.

Trying to tactfully explain an impending war was bad enough without also including some lies.

Leaving out a pair of possibly incompetent spies wasn't that hard, but failing to account for Iris's involvement meant Prompto was essentially claiming he'd acted alone. Fortunately, if there was one good thing to come from delivering such terrible news, it was that everyone had bigger problems on their mind than why he had dared, or how he had gotten away with it. The rest of the conversation, however, more than made up for that small comfort in a storm of answerless questions.

Once it finally ended, there was a silence as awkward as it was ominous. That wasn't much of a surprise, really. There was only so much that could be said or done in the face of such a bleak report. Even if war wasn't a sure thing (yet), it wasn't like anyone had a plan to make them feel better. Even Zack hadn't had any idea where to start, and he'd known about this for a lot longer. The closest thing they had to a strategy so far was just letting it happen.

"Well, you've given us much to consider," said Ignis finally, lifting a contemplative hand to his chin. "I must say, I'm astonished that you would place yourself in a position to overhear their audience, and even more so that such a risk turned out to be the right choice. I can't praise you for eavesdropping, but under the circumstances, I can't reprimand you either."

There was an edge to Ignis's voice that suggested suspicion that there was more to the story than Prompto had told, but evidently, he didn't think now was the time or place to discuss it. (And he was right, given that they were sitting in the Amicitia dining room.) More importantly, Noct nodded slowly in agreement, and Prompto breathed a sigh of relief. That was as close to forgiveness as he expected, or deserved.

"We'll worry about this later," said Gladio, crossing his arms, and looked Prompto in the eye. "You said Zack and Cloud are gonna join the Crownsguard. Are Iggy and I really supposed to train 'em, or is that just so they can stay in the Crown City without too many questions?"

"I don't think two former soldiers will need a great deal of training, Gladio," said Ignis, with just a bite of impatience in his voice. After Prompto's ill tidings, his temper seemed a little shorter than usual. "Given everything we've heard of their past adventures, to say nothing of everything we _haven't_ , I have little doubt that our training will be limited to helping them pass as Lucians."

"Good point," said Gladio, looking more than a little disgruntled. He was probably one of the best people to ask for a crash course in Crown City culture, so he shouldn't have been so resentful at the thought of helping Zack and Cloud navigate Insomnia… but if Prompto had to guess, he was still a bit envious of their real-life experience.

Noct nodded distractedly. "Aerith was there too, right? You didn't say anything about her."

"Yeah, 'cause there's not a lot to say," said Prompto. "Other than that she says hi. His Majesty told her she might have to take up healing sooner or later, but not yet. For now, she can just live her life as usual." The others relaxed slightly; they must have been really worried about her. "But he did say she and Zack and Cloud had to go get lunch."

"Trust Dad to make that a royal decree," mumbled Noct, who might have been annoyed had he not been so preoccupied.

"You should've seen Aerith," said Prompto, in an effort to lighten the darkest mood he'd ever felt among the four of them. "She showed up hand in hand with Zack, and Cloud was on her arm. Guess it's really true that no one can say no to her." Privately, he wondered who would  _want_  to.

"As long as they don't try anything funny," said Noct, narrowing his eyes, and Prompto almost winced. So much for cheering him up.

To Prompto's surprise, Ignis shook his head. "I think you'd be wiser to keep an eye on Aerith than either of those two; you know how persistent she can be if she wants something. Just remember that she has a much better head on those shoulders than one would think. I believe that as unconventional as her reasoning may be, we can trust her judgment—or, failing that, His Majesty's."

"Yeah," said Noct, letting out a short breath, and ran his hands restlessly along the table. "I know. Dad'll figure it out. It's just… what are we supposed to do now?"

Prompto's heart twinged at the desperation in Noct's voice, uncannily similar to his own turbulent feelings. Going about life as usual, now that they knew how fragile their world really was, seemed wrong somehow. It felt as though they had to _do_ something, but even Ignis didn't have any idea what preparations the four of them could possibly make alone.

"Keep on top of our training," said Gladio, making an effort at his usual casual firmness, though Prompto recognized how tightly wound he was inside from the strain in his voice. "Keep our eyes open and our mouths shut. Do what we're told, and have faith that the people telling us know what they're doing."

Noct pursed his lips. "I'd just feel better if I heard all this from the source, or at least had a little more information to go on. Dad never tells me about anything this important before everything is pretty much settled, and it feels like we're still missing a lot in the meantime. I want to help." His words fell into place slowly, as though it took a colossal effort to collect and speak his thoughts.

A last resort crossed Prompto's mind, but he hesitated. However, as the beginnings of a telltale sound escaped his throat, three pairs of expectant eyes turned to him, and he had no choice but to make his suggestion. "W-well, Zack and Cloud are supposed to stay with Aerith one more night. If you're _really_ desperate, we could always head over to her place, like for dinner or something, and talk to them ourselves."

"But what more could they tell us tonight?" asked Ignis, turning back to Noct with an expression somewhere between exasperated and imploring. "If you're simply trying to ease your own conscience, I strongly advise you to reconsider. His Majesty must be just as worried for Lucis, but he is content to wait until tomorrow to ask for more information. We must not be any less patient."

"And Zack and Cloud must be tired, too," added Gladio unexpectedly, resting his hand on Noct's shoulder. "I'm as curious as you are, but there's really nothing we can do for now. If they're telling the truth, we're not in immediate danger, so we should let it go."

Noct took a deep breath. "If you say so. But…" He looked around at Prompto, Gladio, and Ignis, meeting each pair of eyes in turn. "I'd like us all to be on the same page, so don't mention any of this to Aerith or her new friends till we all have a chance to catch up."

"Got it," said Gladio, and Prompto and Ignis both nodded in agreement. "If nothing else, this is a pretty good excuse to spend the day training. You want in, Prompto?"

Prompto shook his head. Training might keep him occupied and tire him out, but in his experience, firing guns didn't have the same cathartic effect as swinging sharp things around. Given that his focus was this scattered, he'd be lucky if he was half as accurate as usual, and he still tended to get frustrated if he missed his target too often. (It was at moments like these when Prompto most wished he could use other kinds of weapons.)

"Your loss," said Gladio, shrugging. "Iggy?"

"Perhaps later," said Ignis evasively. "I believe I have some research to do."

"Looks like it's just you and me for now, Noct," said Gladio, gesturing to his backyard. "C'mon, let's head outside while we still can. Looks like it might start raining soon, so we'll have to work fast if you wanna practice point warping." He was using the gung-ho tone he always used when he shelved his own feelings and carried Noct, Prompto, and sometimes Ignis on his shoulders. Had his intentions been any more selfish than that, Prompto might have called it  _bravado_.

Prompto waited for the sliding glass door to close behind Noct and Gladio as they made their way outside, then turned to Ignis. It wasn't like him to be that vague. "What kind of research do you have to do?"

"It's just a continuation of one of my ongoing projects, that's all. There's no need to concern yourself with them. Unless, of course, you'd rather I ask how exactly you stumbled across the passageway you mentioned," added Ignis, leaning forward. "There are only so many others acquainted with the secrets of the Citadel, and last I checked, you weren't one of them."

"All right, all right," said Prompto, holding up his hands in surrender. "You've made your point. I won't ask."

"Good," said Ignis, and though the smile he offered might ordinarily have been sharp, today it looked weary. "If you're not going to train with Noct and Gladio, you should get some rest if you can. It's been a long day already, and it's barely half over."

"Don't remind me," said Prompto, stifling a sudden yawn. "If you're leaving too, do you wanna give me a ride home?" It wasn't _that_ long a walk to the bus stop, but somehow, the idea of riding public transportation with a load of strangers didn't sit well with him after a day like this.

Ignis must have sensed that, or maybe he was just eager to get to his research, but either way, he was evidently feeling more indulgent than usual. "I don't see why not," he said, getting to his feet. "Wait a moment. I'll go make sure Noct and Gladio don't need us to stay."

"'Kay," said Prompto, taking out his phone and flicking off the 'silent' switch. No messages. A peculiar pang of loneliness gripped his chest, and he sighed, pocketing his phone again. He'd given Zack and Cloud his blessing by wishing them good luck, so he didn't really have the right to go back on it now, but all his previous amusement had turned to worry.

Aerith had never been the best at keeping in touch in the first place, and she was likely better than fine—out to lunch with Zack and Cloud, or maybe back at her house already—but he couldn't help but fret. It had only been one day, but enough had already changed that it felt like life would never go back to normal. What if those changes never stopped? What if Prompto and Aerith drifted apart instead of holding one another steady like they always had before?

What if she was already happier with Zack and Cloud than she was with him and the guys?

* * *

Maybe it was how much had happened over the past couple days, but Prompto half expected to be awakened in the middle of the night, either by news of an impending invasion or by a call from Aerith saying she'd found another alleged refugee sleeping in a flowerbed. Instead, the time slipped by without much event. So little, in fact, that Prompto had been awake for almost an entire minute the next morning before he remembered the terrible news he had overheard yesterday.

Checking his phone, he discovered that he had managed to sleep through his nine o'clock alarm, that it was past ten already, and that he still had exactly zero new messages. This time, however, he couldn't just let that slide. Zack and Cloud were most likely in an audience with the king, but even having been entrusted with some extremely sensitive information, Aerith probably wouldn't be allowed in on the nitty-gritty details. She didn't strike Prompto as being much for war councils, anyway.

He had just started composing a text message to ask her whether there was any kind of plan when his phone vibrated in his hands, a split second before it slipped from his grasp and fell directly onto his face. Picking it up again with a sleepy grimace, Prompto held it up to see the name. _Aerith Gainsborough._ Speak of the devil.

Answering her call, Prompto put her on speaker and set his phone on his bedside table. "Good timing. I was just wondering what was up."

"Prompto Argentum?" The speaker was an unknown male, the sound of whose unfamiliar voice froze Prompto's heart and sparked a thousand terrible possibilities in his mind, but he forced himself to speak through the burst of panic.

"Who is this?"

"Nyx Ulric," said the voice, and the name was enough to jumpstart Prompto's heart and then to send it into overdrive.  _Nyx Ulric_? As in, the single most famous member of the Kingsglaive? "Aerith recommended you as an extra pair of hands. Zack and Cloud are moving into my apartment complex at Fifteenth and Laura, and I've been running around buying furniture and appliances since yesterday, but their place isn't really habitable yet. That's where you come in."

"Wh-when do you need me to be there?" asked Prompto, eagerness beginning to override his initial shock. If it meant complying with a direct request from Nyx Ulric, he'd move heaven and earth to make it happen—never mind why. (It might have had something to do with the fact that he'd already met Zack and Cloud, so he was automatically considered trustworthy.)

"Whenever you can would be great," said Nyx. "Just not within the next hour or so, if you want anyone to be there to let you in. I'll have Aerith text you the exact address in a few minutes. Did you want to talk to her?"

Nyx spoke just briskly enough that it took Prompto a moment to understand the question, and he swallowed. "Yeah, that'd be great."

Rather than say anything, Nyx must have simply handed Aerith's phone back, because her voice said, "Hey."

"Don't 'hey' me," said Prompto, still starstruck, and his tone was a little shorter than he intended from the excitement. "That was Nyx Ulric. Like, the most famous Glaive ever. What are you doing with _Nyx Ulric_?"

"Shopping for Zack and Cloud," said Aerith, sounding nonplussed, as though that should be obvious. "They're busy with His Majesty and Clarus, straightening out identification and paperwork and probably lots of top secret stuff, so I asked what I could to do help. Apparently, this is it."

Prompto took a deep breath. Aerith almost never rubbed things in on purpose, but the nonchalance with which she tended to accept her incredible luck could be frustrating. Prompto had always wanted to be in the Kingsglaive—more than ever, after meeting Crowe—but had never gotten his feet under him enough to actually prepare for such a path. Yet here Aerith was, acting like it was no big deal to go shopping with a war hero.

"Trust me, the glamor wears off fast," said Aerith, and Prompto almost choked. He hadn't realized he was that easy to read over a phone call. "We've been standing in line at the cell phone store for the past half hour, because I don't think the person in front of us has ever operated anything invented after the wheel. I'd trade places with you if I could, too."

"Okay, fine," said Prompto, torn between sheepishness and annoyance. "Point taken. See you later. And… uh, Nyx too."

"I'll text you in a bit," said Aerith, sounding distracted. Maybe they were finally about to be helped. "Bye."

And with that, she hung up. Prompto stared at his phone screen as it went dark, then ran a hand through his messy hair and shook himself to action. Time to track down a clean enough outfit to make a good impression on a war hero.

* * *

Unfortunately, by the time Prompto finally made it to the new apartment (having had to do a surprise load of laundry), Nyx had already left on some other kind of business. For all his irrepressible disappointment, Prompto couldn't really blame him. He must have had much more important, Glaive-ly things to do than mundane chores, especially since Zack at least would be able to help out whenever they showed up.

In the meantime, however, Prompto and Aerith had to make the place presentable themselves, which took a bit longer than he had anticipated. By the time they finally finished, it was past sunset, and he'd been keeping so busy he hadn't noticed how long it had been since he had eaten. Only as his belly let out a growl like a daemon did he realize how hungry he was.

Glancing into the next room, half expecting Aerith to make some snide comment about how she could hear his empty stomach from there, Prompto pulled out his phone to check the time and start gauging how long it'd take for some kind of takeout to arrive. Instead, he found the answer to his prayers in the form of a text from Ignis.

 

> **[17:01] Iggy:** I'm dropping off Zack, Cloud, and a considerable amount of pizza at their new address. Enjoy.

Prompto took a moment to thank Bahamut he'd had the foresight to tell Ignis he was heading over to help Aerith, and called into the next room. "Zack and Cloud are on their way with pizza."

"How do you know?" Aerith called back, but lapsed into a fit of loud sneezes. The apartment hadn't been used since the cold season started, so there'd been a lot of dust in the heating vents when they'd been tested out yesterday. To hear Aerith tell it, she hated dust masks more than she hated sneezing, although she'd caved and shifted the green bandana on her head down to her nose at one point when she could barely breathe.

"Iggy said so," said Prompto, once the noise had stopped.

"Oh," said Aerith, making her appearance in the doorway, and sniffled. "That reminds me, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about."

"What?"

"Iris told me why you were in the library yesterday," said Aerith, and Prompto's stomach dropped. So much for keeping her involvement a secret. "What did you tell the others? Just so I know how much I have to lie about, in case Ignis comes up too or something."

"They know about me, and what I heard. Not about her."

"Except Ignis, probably," said Aerith, shaking her head. That must have been what had reminded her. "I'm not sure about Noct, but it's only a matter of time before Gladio catches on, too. You should think about writing out your last will and testament before he starts asking what you did with his little sister."

Prompto swallowed a groan. "Not funny, Aerith."

Aerith opened her mouth, maybe to beg to differ, but a voice from the doorway cut her off. "Ding-dong," called Zack, sounding unusually tentative. "This is the place, right?"

"Yes," said Aerith, rushing out to the entry area, and Prompto followed to find Zack and Cloud looking relieved in the split second before their expressions turned incredulous instead. They might have been about as shocked by Aerith's domestic appearance as the place itself, what with her pink apron and all. "Welcome home."

"Holy shit," said Cloud, looking around the living room with wide eyes, and almost dropped the enormous pizza boxes he was carrying. (After closing the door, Aerith snatched them both away and whisked them to the kitchen.) "This is…"

"Awesome!" exploded Zack, beaming, and seemed to be trying to look everywhere at once. "This place is like, twice as big as my folks' house, and it's gotta be ten times bigger than our quarters back in the barracks."

"Sure feels that way," agreed Cloud quietly, running his hand along the wall as he wandered further inside. As he approached one of the bedrooms, Prompto caught sight of a peculiar expression in his eyes, like a wistful and wary kind of hunger. Like he wanted something badly, but was afraid it would be taken away from him, and didn't dare to hope that he could really have it.

Prompto didn't know what possessed him to do it, but he rested his hand on Cloud's shoulder and pushed him gently toward the room. "It's yours." After a couple hours of scrubbing, Prompto had started resenting the amount of work he'd been doing, but seeing Cloud so disarmed at the prospects of something as simple as having a room to himself… it all seemed worthwhile.

"How long has it been since we've gotten to sleep in our own beds?" continued Zack, charging around the corner into the master bedroom, and there was a squeak that Prompto knew meant he had immediately thrown himself down on the bed. "Ah, seriously, I'm so happy I could cry. _Ow_!"

Just before his exclamation, there had been a sound like Aerith had thrown something at him. Prompto didn't have to wait long to find out his suspicions were right. "Good; looks like it works. Anyway, here's a belated birthday present, to make up for all the years you spent unconscious and/or on the run."

"I'll treasure it as long as I live," said Zack. "What is it?"

"Your new phone," said Aerith, and Prompto finally approached the doorway to find Zack holding up a brand-new smartphone… in a sparkly hot pink case. "There weren't a lot of cases left, and that one reminded me of you."

"Bright, fun, and eye-catching?" asked Zack, fluttering his eyelashes.

"Loud and gives me a headache," said Aerith, then turned to face Prompto, brandishing a second smartphone. "Here's yours, Cl… oh. Could you give this to Cloud?"

Choosing not to dwell on Aerith's mistake, Prompto accepted the other phone. It had a black matte case that Prompto initially thought was plain, but as his fingers slid along it, he realized that it was emblazoned with a glossy wolfish-looking design. There had definitely been a wider selection than Aerith had suggested, if she had managed to find something so inexplicably suited to Cloud.

Retracing his steps down the hall, Prompto found Cloud standing in the center of his room and staring around as if in awe. The room was unadorned and, to most eyes, depressing, but he looked as if he had never seen anything so rich.

"Here," said Prompto, proffering the phone, and Cloud jumped before taking it.

"Thanks," said Cloud, looked down at the phone blankly as he turned it over in his hand. His fingers brushed over the wolf design, but his eyes were moving too quickly for him to really be studying it. More likely, his thoughts were elsewhere. "I'll… probably need some help setting it up. Niflheim is pretty advanced, but nothing like Insomnia."

"That's what we're here for," said Prompto, and Cloud glanced over at him in surprise.

"Your clothes are in the dresser in Zack's room, Cloud," said Aerith, making a sudden appearance in the hallway, and Prompto turned to find that she'd seized Zack by the wrist and was dragging him back to the main area. "Nyx helped me buy everything today, so if you two don't have enough socks or something, he's the one to blame. He left his number on the counter in case you need anything else, but he's also a Glaive, so he's pretty busy."

Prompto stood aside, and Cloud recognized his cue. The two of them trailed after Zack and Aerith as they led the way out to the kitchen.

"You're making it really hard to hate you," said Prompto jokingly, crossing his arms as Aerith started serving up slices of pizza with just about everything except anchovies. (He'd have to thank Ignis later.) "I was all set to complain about how you two are getting your own apartment on a silver platter, especially since Aerith and I spent most of the day cleaning the place, and then you have to go and be grateful for it."

"How could we not be?" asked Zack, tilting his head. "We both almost died and then spent a year on the run, and one of us doesn't even remember that, so this is basically a dream come true. We made it to the capital, just like we wanted, and we're both alive to see it—thanks to you, Aerith." He raised his slice of pizza in an impromptu toast. "And thanks for the little housewarming party, too."

"It's no trouble," said Aerith. "We were told to do it."

Zack pursed his lips in a pout, and Prompto caught himself giggling, as much at Aerith's tactlessness as Zack's childish expression. Somehow, he had forgotten how adept she was at ruining moments, and took a strange kind of comfort from that habit. Her style of communication took enough getting used to that even if she _was_  getting comfortable around Zack and Cloud, it'd take some time before the three of them could get as close as her and Prompto.

But there were more important things to consider than his position in Aerith's life, given that Zack and Cloud had spent the day talking to the king. "How did it go today, anyway?" asked Prompto tentatively.

Cloud bit his lip instead of his pizza, and uttered a muffled yelp, but Zack only shrugged. "Tell you later," he said, already digging into his meal as enthusiastically as if he hadn't eaten for all the years he'd been away from his last home. "For now, pizza."

Smiling, Prompto reached forward to take a slice of his own. He couldn't argue with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A happy belated birthday to Aerith and Ignis!


	11. Standing Pretty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aerith sells a basket of flowers to an unexpected buyer, mostly because no one will let her do anything else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to last chapter's commenters! Reviews are always appreciated, but this time they _really_ pushed me to continue this amid a particularly busy semester and 3+ other projects. Thank you so much!

Pizza had been devoured, phones set up and played with, the last of the furniture moved into place per Zack and Cloud's preferences, and new contact information exchanged (including Prompto sneaking a peek at Nyx's number). All that remained now was to finish the conversation Prompto had tried to start too soon.

"Right," said Zack, rubbing the back of his neck. "If you thought we did anything cool today, I think you're going to be disappointed. We just spent the day getting our bearings and talking about the past. It was just the two of us explaining some of the finer points you've heard, like, twice already. And then reciting everything we know about power structures, and everyday life in the Empire, and stuff."

Aerith nodded. She'd be interested to hear more, but the two of them must be exhausted from having to recount so much in one day. Especially if it was as painful as the stories Zack had told before. "Are you going to do more of the same tomorrow?"

" _Gods_ , no," said Zack, and Cloud cracked a weary smile. "I think we're gonna meet up with Gladio and Ignis and do some training, or something. We're supposed to be Crownsguard members now—can't remember if I mentioned that."

"You did," said Aerith. "It was one of the first things you told us."

Zack grimaced, shaking his head. "Sorry. Today's been a bit of a blur, honestly. I've had to remember so much I'd rather forget, and in such crazy detail, I barely know my own name anymore." Cloud nodded in sympathetic agreement.

"Nah, you're good," said Prompto, voicing Aerith's thoughts exactly. He took out his phone to check the time, or maybe set an alarm. "Any idea when you're gonna start training?"

"Nope," said Zack cheerfully. "But we actually have phones now, thanks to Aerith, so we can just figure it out once we wake up tomorrow. Isn't technology amazing?"

"Yeah, thanks, Aerith," added Cloud, not to be outdone.

Aerith smiled at their politeness, but shook her head. "No need to thank me. Nyx paid for them with His Majesty's money. All I did was stand in line with him."

"No, really," said Zack, wide-eyed. "We owe you a lot. Even if getting the phones wasn't a big deal, taking us in like you did definitely was." He grinned, so genuinely that Aerith found herself mirroring his smile. "If I get a little extra pocket money, I'll take you on the best date anyone's ever been on. That's a promise."

"O-okay," said Aerith, managing a nod, and resented her instinctive blush. "But remember, even if it's the best date in the world, it's still just a date. Don't get too ahead of yourself." She hadn't known Zack for long, but she knew his imagination tended to run away with him. The main problem was that it would take hers with it if not for Cloud's awkward, forlorn sort of presence.

Prompto cleared his throat. " _Anyway_ , if you two are done flirting, I have something important to ask you, Zack."

"Yeah?"

"Didn't you say you'd check in on those Turks today?"

Zack's eyes widened as though he had just remembered something hard to explain. "Oh… uh, yeah," he said awkwardly, ruffling his hair. "There was kind of a lot going on. Didn't get the chance." He looked so uncomfortable, and his tone was so unconvincing, that Aerith's first thought was that he was a terrible liar.

Prompto must have gotten the same feeling, because he crossed his arms and asked, "Didn't get the chance, or didn't want to?"

Zack let out a short breath. "Well, actually… I didn't wanna blow their cover, in case His Majesty didn't know about them yet. Turks are pretty good at negotiations, not to mention blackmail, so they might've been able to made some deal with Drautos to get out of being brought to the top. It'd be safer to just meet with the captain ourselves, and ask about them then."

Cloud nodded. Apparently, he'd been in on that decision, which strangely made Aerith feel a little better. "Shouldn't be too hard, since Nyx is our neighbor now."

Prompto looked faintly envious, but his phone buzzed before he could say anything, and he checked it. "Looks like it's now or never if we want Iggy to come get us, Aerith. He's taking Gladio out for drinks and lesson planning for tomorrow." He glanced over at Zack and Cloud. "Which means, knowing him, he'll want to know when you two wanna start training sooner rather than later."

"Oh," said Zack, exchanging a glance with Cloud. "Okay then. If all I have to do is name a random time, how about noon?"

"We'll let him know," said Prompto, texting a brief response and pocketing his phone again. "In the meantime, I guess it's time to start cleaning up. Again."

* * *

Thankfully, it did not take long for them to gather Aerith's cleaning supplies, because Ignis texted Prompto to say he'd arrived the moment they finished.

"That was fast," said Aerith, picking up the bag she had only just set down. "I know there's not usually a lot of congestion at this hour, but still, this is good time even for him. He must've been close by." Maybe he'd already picked up Gladio, and just meant to drop off her and Prompto on their way elsewhere. A number of Gladio's favorite drinking establishments were on the outskirts, after all.

"Thanks again, Aerith," said Cloud. "And you too, Prompto. Sorry you ended up dragged into this mess." He couldn't have known for sure that Prompto had overheard everything, but something in his expression told Aerith that he was apologizing for that, too. Just in case.

Prompto smiled as though trying not to look pleased. He must not have expected to be included in their gratitude. "Don't worry about it."

"Bye, Aerith!" exclaimed Zack, making a show of walking her to the door and opening it for her. (Cloud and Prompto exchanged an uncertain and somewhat exasperated glance in her peripheral vision before following.) "Text me when you get home."

"I will," said Aerith, and Zack closed the door behind Prompto as he joined her in the hall.

Hustling downstairs at Prompto's urging, they made their way out to the street to find Ignis's car parallel-parked in a red zone with the warning lights on. He could be surprisingly daring, but he knew how to drive the City like no other, and was on average the safest driver Aerith knew. All his risks were the calculated kind, which was probably why the two of them had never quite been on the same page.

Prompto and Aerith both practically dove into the back seat, which was fortunate, because shotgun was already taken. Sure enough, Aerith's hunch had been right. "Oh, hey, Gladio," she said, strapping in just behind him, and Ignis pulled away from the curb to merge smoothly back into traffic. "What's up?"

"Not much," said Gladio, and Aerith sighed. That was his traditional response to her, whether he had slept all day or gotten a new scar. She wasn't sure whether he was trying to act offhand, or he was just that unimpressed with everything in his life. "It's been a long few days, though."

"Yeah, and it looks like tomorrow's gonna be long too," said Prompto. "Zack and Cloud say noon works for training."

"Noted," said Ignis. "Send me their contact information at your earliest convenience so I can coordinate with them directly. There's no reason for you two to act as middlemen anymore." Prompto nodded, not that Ignis could see him, and set to work on doing so immediately.

Aerith took a moment to think. She hadn't really thought about it before, but the three of them making plans for tomorrow without her—or at least one of them helping the other two make plans—felt surprisingly lonely. Especially since Zack and Cloud were involved. "Can I come along, too? You don't even need to come get me. I can take the bus."

"No," said Ignis firmly. "You are not a member of the Crownsguard, and regardless of whether or not Zack and Cloud's positions as new recruits is simply a front, we should still consider our meetings classified for now. And besides, there's no real reason for you to come along in any case. Frankly, you'd be a distraction to at least one of them."

"I know, but…" began Aerith, unsure of what she wanted to say. Or rather, how she wanted to say it. She glanced over at Prompto for help, but he was staring fixedly out the window in a way she knew meant to leave him out of this. She was on her own.

"You've done your job, Aerith," said Gladio, turning back to look at her. "You brought Zack and Cloud to His Majesty, like they wanted, and Ignis and I will be training them, like His Majesty wanted. They even have an apartment and some friends in pretty high places. No offense, but I don't know if you can do much more for them now."

That stung a little, but Gladio's voice was so tired that Aerith couldn't have taken offense even if she had wanted to. Still, something bothered her. Why  _did_ she feel such responsibility toward Zack and Cloud? It must be because she'd found them first, and because she knew them best. Or maybe it was because, given everything she'd heard over the past couple days, she was incredibly worried about them.

"I'd still like to see them," said Aerith finally. "After their first day of… training."

"That's entirely your decision," said Ignis, sounding resigned. "I don't dictate your free time or theirs, but it'll have to wait until our work is done."

"In the meantime, you got some flowers to sell," said Gladio, reaching back from the front seat, and Aerith automatically touched her fingers to his. (According to Gladio, that gesture had originated as a way of reassuring Iris when she was very young, but had spilled onto Aerith somewhere along the line.) "I think you need to start earning back what you spent on those two, anyway."

"I guess so, yeah," said Aerith, trying not to sound too sullen. She had never disliked her job, especially since it came with such good people-watching opportunities, but selling flowers had never seemed like such an unappealing proposition before. It wasn't that she needed to be with Zack and Cloud every waking moment, but that whatever training they were supposed to do might tell her more about them than she could get from conversation.

"Look on the bright side," said Prompto unexpectedly. "Even if you _were_ allowed to go with them tomorrow, I don't think you'd get away with staying on the sidelines. You'd just be stuck sparring with Gladio in Shield Mode all day."

"Hey, watch it," growled Gladio, and Aerith relaxed despite herself as Prompto laughed. She had to remember that Zack and Cloud weren't going to war, but to her friends. And maybe, if she gave them the chance to bond on their own terms, they'd all be able to laugh and tease one another like this, too.

* * *

True to Aerith's expectations, the first part of the next day was almost entirely uneventful, and she was having trouble showing off her usual million-crown smile to attract customers. Her heart just wasn't in it. Even Prompto, texting her now and again in the middle of his online university course, could not alleviate her boredom or anxiety. Why was she stuck standing on a street on the outskirts, selling flowers, while the political situation was so tense? And why didn't anyone else in Insomnia sense it?

It didn't help that Aerith had no idea what kind of training Ignis and Gladio had planned. As SOLDIERs, or soldiers, or whatever, Zack and Cloud's abilities in most areas must have been formidable already. Still, she couldn't suppress a twinge of concern. Cloud may have killed Sephiroth, but right now, he was just a sixteen-year-old in a fragile nineteen-year-old body. How could he go up against someone like Gladio?

For that matter, while she was busy worrying, would Ignis and Zack's drastically different personalities lead to one of their untimely deaths?

No, Aerith realized with a jolt, catching sight of an unexpected but familiar face in the crowd, and stared in astonishment. The dead weren't often seen walking along a crowded street. But what was Zack doing here, alone in this part of town, at this time of day? Had he skipped out on his first assignment as Crownsguard? He looked distinctly lost, too busy staring at a map to notice her.

"Zack?" she called, emerging from her customary lunch-break alley, and Zack looked around briefly. But he must have thought he'd imagined her voice, because he glanced back down again within a few moments. "Zack!"

This time, he paid more attention, turning his head a few different directions before doing a double take as he finally spotted her waving. "Aerith?" returned Zack incredulously, blinking a few times as if convinced this must be a dream, and approached in a hurry. "What are you doing here?"

"I work here," said Aerith, brandishing her flower basket. "What are  _you_ doing here?"

"I guess you could say I'm working, too," said Zack, holding up his map. "Gladio and Ignis started our training by showing us around the Crown City, and Ignis said we should check out the outskirts first, since that's where we started. They're over there, with Cloud." He pointed, even though Aerith couldn't see, and she smiled. Trust Ignis to find a way to include her, even after he said he couldn't. "More importantly, what do you mean, you work here? You're just standing around looking pretty."

"Thanks, but I'm actually standing around selling flowers," said Aerith, hoisting her flower basket higher. Either he was too tall to have noticed it, or too oblivious.

Zack looked down, as awestruck as if he'd never seen flowers before. "I'll take a dozen," he announced, taking something out of his pocket, and flapped it open in an unnecessarily flashy way. "Check it out. New wallet, complete with real, actual Crown City currency. Cloud got one, too—Nyx gave 'em to us just this morning."

"Normally, flowers are one crown apiece," said Aerith, wavering coyly in place the way she'd learned could attract customers and soften admirers. It was much easier than usual, with such a receptive audience. "But for you… ten."

Zack froze, uncomprehending. "What? Why?"

"You owe me a lot, remember?" asked Aerith, shifting her weight to one hip. "You even said so yourself."

"Yeah, and I also said I was gonna take you out on the best date ever!" exclaimed Zack, crestfallen. "I can't do that if you rob me now!"

Aerith smiled. "I really am looking forward to it, but dates don't pay the bills. I bought you an entire outfit so we could wash your clothes, and I fed you and Cloud a few times, too. I also put you up for a couple nights, but I'm willing to throw those in for free if you buy enough flowers to make up for the material goods."

As she spoke, Cloud approached from a distance. His skin was so pale that he still looked almost like a ghost, but his smile was decidedly alive, and didn't seem quite so rare after yesterday evening. "She's right. Better pay up, Zack." After dropping a few crowns into the basket, he took a few flowers in return and tucked them carefully into his pocket, as if showing off how easy it was.

"Wait, how many flowers make up some clothes and food?" asked Zack, wide-eyed, and looked down at his hands as if trying to count on his fingers. In that moment, Aerith remembered that he had left home before high school, and stifled a giggle. "And how many gil are in a crown, anyway? No one mentioned this in Wall Market!"

Aerith's chortle became a laugh. "Just take the whole basket and we'll call it even."

"Here, I gotcha," said a half-familiar voice, and someone flipped a fifty-crown coin into her basket from the shadows. "Now you owe  _me_."

Aerith whirled around, startled. Given her sixth sense, especially combined with the number of tricks she'd learned from Gladio over the years, it wasn't often that anyone could catch her off-guard. "Reno," greeted Zack, eyes narrowed in suspicion, and stepped deftly between him and Aerith. "What do you want?"

"Information," said Reno, sliding into the watery sunlight, and leaned against the alley wall. He looked impeccably haphazard, just like the last time Aerith had seen him, but there was an edge to his lax aura this time. "Change of plans. Drautos said our job is to keep tabs on you two." His eyes, fixed intently on Zack, flicked momentarily to Cloud.

Zack scowled. "You serious?"

" _And_  you," said Reno, turning toward Aerith almost expectantly, and her heart skipped an unpleasant beat. Could it be that he knew about her powers? If he was working for Drautos now, and Drautos worked for the king, it wasn't out of the question that he had heard of them.

"What?" demanded Zack, crossing his arms. "What's Aerith got to do with this?"

"You tell me."

Aerith let out a short, silent breath of relief, but frowned as she realized her underlying unease had not ebbed away. It only took her a moment to trace it back to its source: that even if Reno was not so informed that he understood her situation, Drautos still might be. But why did the thought of his involvement provoke such disquiet? She had never met the captain of the Kingsglaive, but there was no reason for her to distrust him.

(Nonetheless, every time Aerith had felt this restless prickle in the back of her mind, like she'd forgotten something important, something really had been wrong. She'd have to keep an eye on this.)

"Can't tell you what we don't know," said Cloud, stepping further into the alley. His fists were clenched and his eyes were fiery, but he was trembling a little, as if from exertion. He may not have been too physically imposing at the moment, but he was undoubtedly the best liar out of the three of them.

"Look, last time I saw you two, you were a vegetable, and  _you_ were fixing to get into the Crown City or die trying," said Reno, pointing to Cloud and Zack in turn. "That's a pretty big difference from what I'm seeing in front of me right now, and I have a feeling it happened sometime after you met this girl. What I wanna know is how this kid can suddenly walk and talk again."

"If it's all the same to you, we spent our first night in Insomnia in a church," said Zack, squaring his shoulders. "Guess the Six must've taken pity on us."

Reno did not dignify Zack with a response. "You, flower girl," he said, addressing Aerith, but did not move his eyes from Zack and Cloud. "You said you found 'em sleeping. Did they both wake up?"

Aerith took a breath, disguising it as a sigh of exasperation at the question. Technically speaking, she'd had to wake one of them supernaturally, but they _had_ both awakened. That loophole gave her just enough courage to meet Reno's eyes. "Yes."

After searching Aerith's expression for a long, nerve-wracking moment, Reno heaved a sigh. "All right, if you wanna be like that, I guess we'll be doing this the hard way after all." He crossed his arms. "But seriously, would it kill you to give me something to work with? I may be a Turk, but sneaking around and gathering information never agreed with me."

"Maybe if you gave  _us_ something to work with in exchange, it'd be different," said Aerith cautiously.

"Like what?"

"Like why you're working for Drautos all of a sudden," said Zack, before Aerith could even stop to think. "I get that the Turks' loyalties change with the wind, but working for a Lucian is… something else. Especially a Lucian who had you captured and interrogated."

"I don't know about you, but I like my head on my shoulders where it freaking belongs," said Reno scornfully. "If it comes down to it, I'd rather work for a Lucian than die, and any imperial citizen who says otherwise is either lying or stupid." He shrugged. "Besides, I make my living as a double agent, and I like to think I've gotten good at that by now. Who's going to stop me from double-crossing Drautos too?"

Aerith narrowed her eyes. Drautos clearly trusted the Turks enough to let them out of his sight, and if Reno had dared say something like that aloud, he might not even be bugged. Assuming Reno was telling the truth about his lack of enthusiasm, he must have some other reason for following through on this investigation instead of using his freedom to run away. Alternatively, Drautos could be in on this somehow, which threw everything Reno said into even more doubt.

"Don't think too hard, sweetheart," said Reno, breaking into Aerith's thoughts, and she realized that he was watching her just a little too closely for her tastes. "It may be complicated, but it's not  _that_ complicated. All you need to know is that we've been assigned to keep tabs on you and these two."

"Hey," said Zack, as if just remembering something. "Speaking of 'we', I don't think I've ever seen you work alone before. Where's Rude?"

"Oh, we haven't worked out this girl's schedule yet, so he's probably still hanging out at her place," said Reno, gesturing somewhat aggressively in Aerith's direction with a thumb, and she blinked a few times. "At this point, I might as well tell him to tail you two instead. You know, since I'm here already, and I've more than paid for all those flowers."

Aerith opened her mouth, but Gladio's voice interrupted, approaching from a distance. "Okay, you two, I think that's enough socializing for now," he called, and Reno melted back into the shadows so quickly he might have simply vanished. Aerith wouldn't have thought someone like Reno could be that quick and inconspicuous, but appearances were deceiving. "You can flirt with Aerith more later."

"Can I quote you on that?" asked Zack as Gladio came into view and stopped at the end of the alley, and Aerith marveled at how easily he could make such a quip. Judging by his flippant behavior, they were not to mention Reno. For someone who seemed so suspicious of the Turks, even antagonistic, he seemed to trust them enough not to interfere. Was it just because he owed them for helping him escape the Empire?

" _No_ ," said Gladio, crossing his arms. "These two weren't bothering you, were they, Aerith?"

"Not even a little bit," said Aerith, fishing around in the bottom of her basket for Reno's fifty crowns. Slipping the coin into her pocket, she offered Zack the basket, and he accepted it distractedly. "Actually, between the two of them, they bought all my stock. It looks like I'm getting off early today."

Gladio raised his eyebrows. "What are you gonna do with all that extra time and money?"

"I don't suppose I could bribe you to let me come with you guys?" asked Aerith, tilting her head. "If _this_  counts as training, I don't see why I can't."

"Please," said Zack immediately, and Gladio looked momentarily disarmed at his seriousness. Ordinarily, Zack might have clasped his hands as if in prayer, or begged, or put a cherry on top for comedic effect, but this time he simply looked Gladio full in the face. "You don't know how much it would mean to me. To us."

Cloud nodded emphatically, and Aerith pursed her lips. They trusted Reno enough not to out him or his plans to a member of the Crownsguard, but not enough to willingly leave her alone with him. She'd never had so many questions before, but she didn't have the time or words to voice any of them.

"Sorry, but I think we're gonna head back to my place and start doing some actual training next," said Gladio, scratching his head. "Just to see how you guys compare to us. Maybe next time, but for now…"

Zack let out a dejected sigh, but his gaze was colder than Aerith had ever seen it, fixed on the corner around which Reno had disappeared. Aerith couldn't decipher all the nuance of his expression, but it seemed like he was thinking hard. "I'll text you when it's over, and we can meet up then. All of us." Given where he was looking, he was probably addressing Reno, though of course there was no reply.

"Stay safe on your way home," said Cloud, meeting Aerith's eyes, and she froze. Somehow, it seemed like the first time he had really looked at her, and she was almost startled by how clear and sharp his expression had become. This was one layer below the trauma and its aftermath, but still not quite his true self. This was who he was as a soldier, alert and resolute, projecting strength despite his frail body.

"I will," said Aerith uncertainly, and although there was no indication of Reno's presence, it felt like he was smirking. "You, too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A happy early birthday to Gladio!


	12. Happy Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which an uninvited guest attends Prompto's party, and Aerith makes some connections (but decidedly not through marriage).

If there was one good thing about having absentee parents, it was that Prompto's birthday parties tended to be _awesome_.

Not that he was planning to go totally crazy, of course. This may have been the big 2-0, but that was no excuse to be rude. Only after Prompto warned all his neighbors that his social life was not, in fact, dead did he turn up his music and dance his way through his chores. He wouldn't put in so much effort to make the house presentable if it was just the guys and Aerith, but he didn't know Zack and Cloud well enough to feel comfortable surrounded by clutter just yet.

Thankfully, Prompto's parents were neat freaks, so he didn't have an overwhelming amount of cleaning to do. All things considered, tidying up didn't darken his mood as much as it usually did—even if he did procrastinate until the last minute—and he even found himself looking forward to the party to come. Two new friends within a week was a pretty sweet record, considering his lifetime average of four. Not even impending war could dampen his spirits now.

Prompto's guests arrived in a pack at six o'clock sharp. He barely heard the buzzer over his music, but still managed to get to the door before anyone broke it down, whereupon Zack's voice was the first to be heard. "Happy birthday!" he shouted, barging in and pulling Prompto into an unexpected one-armed bear hug and squeezing the air from his lungs. The other arm, as Prompto discovered the hard way, was laden with a bag of presents that almost knocked him over.

Unfortunately, he didn't get much of a chance to catch his breath, because Gladio was next. "Congrats on making it all the way to twenty!" he exclaimed, as soon as he got through the door, and closed his arms around the staggering Prompto. Something cold clinked against his back, and he realized it must be a six-pack. "You can finally buy your own drinks instead of mooching off us!"

"Shut up," retorted Prompto, shoving Gladio away, but couldn't keep himself from grinning anyway. Maybe it was a stupid thought, but that alcohol was tangible proof that he was an adult now. He could legally insist on tagging along with Ignis and Gladio whenever they went to bars.

"It's not all it's cracked up to be," said Noct, smiling as well, and gave Prompto a proud fistbump. The several weeks between their birthdays always seemed too long, but now they were finally the same age again. "But yeah, happy birthday, Prompto."

"Many happy returns of the day," said Ignis, his tone somewhat more clipped than usual, and carried a bag of ingredients into the kitchen. Prompto had figured he had enough to make cake, but Ignis always did like bringing his own, just in case. (Especially because, in his ever-so-humble opinion, cake mix didn't _count_.) "Aerith and her plus-one, of sorts, are outside."

Prompto frowned. Cloud was already skulking at the back, and nodded awkwardly as their eyes met. If it wasn't Zack or Cloud… "Plus-one?"

"Yeah," said Zack, leaning against the wall. He seemed more resigned than disappointed, and although his expression was tinged with annoyance, it was mostly just exhausted. Prompto hadn't taken Zack for the kind to accept competition so easily, but apparently, looks could be deceiving. "Long story. You'd better go out and get them so we can all get caught up sooner rather than later."

Nodding, Prompto slid past Zack to peek out the door. He found Aerith standing just outside Ignis's car, talking to…

Okay. Prompto had seen stranger things just within the past few days, but Aerith in deep conversation with  _Reno_ still ranked pretty highly. He snapped a quick picture on his phone as evidence that he wasn't going completely crazy, then stepped fully outside and raised his voice to address them. Or, more specifically, to address a certain Turk: "What are you doing here?"

Aerith didn't so much as turn her head. As a matter of fact, she looked away as though ashamed, the tension in her shoulders visible even at this distance. Prompto had spent enough time around her by now to know what that meant. She hadn't figured out how she wanted to explain this yet.

Reno, meanwhile, turned to face Prompto immediately, and his smooth and relaxed motions suggested that he knew Prompto had been watching them. "Hello to you, too, kid," he said, raising a hand in greeting. "You helped me and Rude out that one time, so I figured I'd drop by and wish you a happy birthday now that I'm free." He grinned. "Aerith here offered to bring me along for the low, low price of fifty crowns."

"He overpaid me for a basket of flowers the other day," said Aerith, shooting Reno an irritated glance, and put her hands on her hips. "This is just repayment. And a way of trying to get everyone on the same page for once."

Prompto stared at her. That was a pretty bold move, even for Aerith. "Did you actually tell the others about this, or did you just…"

"I just," said Aerith simply, before Prompto finished. "They'd have tried to talk me out of it."

"You should've seen their faces when Specs rolled up," said Reno with relish. Prompto couldn't tell whether he'd picked up the others' nickname or just had the right temperament to think of it coincidentally. "They didn't know how to handle it. Zack practically had a heart attack trying to convince her to drop me, and the way ol' Scarface was looking at me, I thought I was gonna have to go through another interrogation."

"I wish you had," said Aerith tartly, crossing her arms. "Either get moving, or give me your jacket. We can always talk more inside." For whatever reason, she'd chosen to wear her favorite pink dress again, and had even found herself a nice red denim mini-jacket to go with it… but apparently, it didn't do much against the chilly October evening.

Reno started walking as soon as his jacket was mentioned, gesturing at Aerith to follow him up to the door. "Then let's go, flower girl."

"Oh… kay," said Prompto, stepping aside to let Reno into his house, and wrinkled his nose at the overpowering smell of his cologne. (He was supposed to be a _spy_ , right? Wasn't he worried his scent would give him away?) "What are you thinking, Aerith?" muttered Prompto as she passed after him, but she did not respond. She only took off her boots and drifted off into the living room.

Prompto took a moment to assess the situation, feeling unpleasantly winded. This was weird, to say the least. Everyone except Reno looked distinctly uneasy. It was incredible how one unplanned extra could make so much of a difference, though admittedly, this was no ordinary uninvited guest. As a Turk, not to mention an illegal intruder last seen in Kingsglaive custody, Reno was a potentially dangerous wild card.

Not that one would know that, from his behavior. "Nice place you got here, Pronto, or whatever your name is," called Reno, his voice slightly muffled from poking his head into the refrigerator. "What's to eat?"

"Get out of the kitchen, and you might find out," said Ignis sharply, already wearing his apron, and moved toward the knife block in such a way that made Prompto think there might be some pretty severe consequences if he didn't. Reno must have gotten the same feeling, because he surfaced again almost immediately and wandered back out to the dining room, where Noct was surveying him through narrowed eyes.

"Hey, aren't you supposed to be a Turk?" asked Gladio, pointing at the bowls of chips, salsa, and popcorn of various flavors and seasonings already on the bar counter. "There are plenty of snacks right here if you're hungry."

"Oh, yeah," said Reno, surfacing again, and wandered back out to the dining area. "I saw those, but I meant, like, _real_ food. Don't think I've eaten a proper meal since I got to Lucis." He took a handful of popcorn. "But thanks anyway."

Mostly to keep himself from murdering a certain freeloader, Prompto glanced over at Aerith, only to find her drifting around the living room like a ghost. That wasn't a good sign in the first place—normally, she couldn't resist moving her body to music—but what concerned Prompto most of all was that this was in keeping with her behavior of the past couple days. Zack and Cloud had been acting a little strange too, but Prompto didn't know them as well, and they had more of a reason.

Reno, obviously, was the icing on the cake. How he had gotten out of Lucian custody, let alone why he was with Aerith, was beyond Prompto, but he got the feeling he shouldn't ask. Everyone else was at least trying to pretend everything was normal, which meant that for whatever reason, they'd seen the value in bringing a Turk along. Maybe they didn't really have a choice, but at least they didn't look like they'd been coerced.

And, to be perfectly honest, Prompto had gotten a lot more accepting of random mysteries since Zack and Cloud had fallen into his life.

"Hey, Cloud," said Prompto, and Cloud glanced over his shoulder distractedly. His eyes were somewhat unfocused at first, as though they hadn't left Reno since he'd walked in. "Is everything… okay?"

Turning around fully, Cloud looked somewhat uncomfortable. "Yeah, about that…"

But Zack interrupted, diving into the conversation with all the subtlety of a hand grenade. "Aren'tcha gonna show us around, Prompto?" he asked, slinging an arm around his shoulders. "It's the first time we've been to your place since we met you!"

"In a minute," said Prompto, disentangling himself from Zack's conspicuously well-timed affection. "I need to talk to Aerith."

Cloud traced Prompto's gaze to her and stayed that way. Zack narrowed his eyes slightly, but then nodded and fell back to the dining room to start a loud discussion about weapons with Gladio and Noct. After one more hesitation, Cloud followed suit.

Prompto took a deep breath, taking a moment to strategize. He wanted more than anything else to pelt Aerith with questions, starting with a lot of _how_ s and  _why_ s, but she tended to either shut down or get defensive in the face of questions she wasn't ready to answer. It would be better to make sure Aerith was at least okay, and work toward getting the information he wanted from there.

"Hey," said Prompto, sidling up to Aerith, and she turned her head to look straight through him. "What's up? You all right?"

"Yeah." Aerith's answer came as no surprise. For all her insistent honesty, she tended to pretend everything was fine until she understood exactly why it wasn't, which meant that situations with a lot of variables—such as this one—could progress far beyond the point when a normal person might reach out to her friends. Prompto couldn't help but think whatever situation she was in had already reached that point. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You tell me," replied Prompto, and Aerith stiffened as though she had heard his words someplace less pleasant before. When she said nothing, Prompto continued, "Seriously, you're acting weird. More than usual, I mean." Maybe some light teasing would convince her to open up.

But Aerith just ran her hands restlessly along the back of Prompto's sofa. "It's nothing."

"It's definitely not nothing," said Prompto, irked. "C'mon, don't do this to me on my birthday."

That seemed to snap Aerith out of it, as she looked up at Prompto as though seeing him for the first time. "Oh shit, that's right! Happy birthday!" He barely had time to brace himself before she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Her embrace wasn't enough to make him see stars the way Zack's and Gladio's had, but it was still reassuring to feel her strength.

"Okay, but seriously," said Prompto, placing his hands on Aerith's shoulders to move her slightly back again, and met her eyes. "Are you all right?"

Aerith pursed her lips, and he could tell she was actually considering his question this time. "Yes, I am. Really. I'm just… confused."

"Well, that makes two of us," said Prompto, and Aerith managed a brief half-smile. Good; that was a start. "Mind telling me what about?"

Smile disappearing again, Aerith let out a short breath almost as if in pain. As she looked Prompto dead in the eye, he suddenly had second thoughts about hearing whatever was going on, but did not voice them. "What do you do when you can't decide whether you should trust someone? When your head says one thing and your gut says something else—which one do you listen to?"

Prompto blinked a few times. "Which is saying what?"

"Almost everything is screaming at me that I shouldn't trust them. But…" Aerith lowered her eyes as if at a loss where to turn them. "I also have that feeling again, and it says I _should_. I don't know what to do."

"That feeling's never been wrong before," pointed out Prompto. "I don't know why you're worrying so much about what your head says." Still, he couldn't suppress a twinge of anxiety. Given that Aerith already knew her hunches were almost always right, it was rare that she ever experienced inner conflict on this scale, and that was more than enough cause for concern. Maybe the stakes were higher somehow, like the consequences would be especially severe if she was wrong.

"I don't really know either," said Aerith. "But everything feels like it's just one discovery away from falling apart, and I don't like that. What if I _make_ that discovery? What if we can't stop the invasion?" The words tumbled from her mouth as if she'd held them in for a long time, and Prompto realized suddenly that she hadn't expressed worry about the Empire even once since she found out about their plans. It must have been eating her up inside, even if other matters occupied her conscious thoughts.

"I don't know what you mean by 'discovery'," said Prompto carefully, "but I think you need to get out of your head. You are _here_ , right now, standing around in my living room, at my twentieth birthday party." He poked the middle of her forehead. "And I invited you because I wanted you to have a good time."

"I know," said Aerith, making an attempt at a smile. "I'm sorry."

"Nope," responded Prompto, pulling Aerith into another hug, then bent down to pick her up by the knees. She fell over his back like a sack of potatoes with a yelp of surprise. (She must have ended up in a cycle of forgetting to eat properly again, because even considering her smaller frame, she was almost _too_ light.) "We're not doing this right now. It's time for some fun."

Aerith muttered something Prompto couldn't make out, pushing against his lower back to prop herself up. He paid her no attention. "Gangway," he announced, striding up to the table. Pausing their conversation mid-sentence as they took one look at him, the group moved their arms, hands, and drinks back as one so Prompto could lay Aerith down, making sure her dress remained firmly in place.

" _Prompto_ ," whined Aerith, sitting up to face him as he took a seat at the head of the table. Prompto had the strangest urge to tell her not to show her back to Reno, but restrained himself. Gladio and Cloud were both within kicking distance if he tried anything, and Zack and Noct were close enough to back them up if it turned into a brawl. "What are you doing?"

Rather than voicing his misgivings, Prompto smiled. "I just remembered—I spaced out the decorations," he said truthfully, meeting Aerith's eyes evenly. Even if she was annoyed with him, he had provided her with a distraction, and they both knew it. "You're the new centerpiece. Congratulations."

"I did bring flowers like always, you know," said Aerith, a little huffily, and gestured to a vase of yellow roses on the bar counter. Prompto hadn't noticed it before; they must have smuggled them in via the bag of gifts. "Actually, they're the only thing I could get you this year, since I'm broke thanks to these two." She gestured to Zack and Cloud without looking at them. If she'd glanced their way, she might have seen that they weren't paying much attention to her words.

This did not escape Gladio's notice. "So who's gonna say it?" he asked, looking between Zack and Cloud.

"Say what?" asked Cloud, eyes snapping instantly to Gladio, as if that could undo the fact that until then his focus had been on her.

"That Aerith is prettier than her flowers, of course," said Zack, still gazing at her, and Noct rolled his eyes as Cloud lowered his head into his arms. "I thought it went without saying, to be honest."

Aerith shook her head. "All that aside, I'm a lousy centerpiece," she said, and Prompto stifled a laugh as she neither denied nor accepted Zack's compliment. "I make a better door than a window. Look, most of you can't even see each other." She spun around and lay flat on her back, her head hanging off the table, almost in Prompto's lap. "There. Fixed it."

"What's going on over there?" called Ignis from the kitchen, and Prompto looked over his shoulder to find him peering over the bar counter with as perplexed an expression as could ever be seen on his face. "It looks like the six of you are preparing an autopsy. Have you killed Aerith already?"

"Don't worry," Aerith called back, her voice slightly distorted by the fact that she was upside-down. "I'm not dead yet."

"Good," said Ignis, returning to his work. "Please let me know if that changes. I'll be sure to avenge your untimely demise. As soon as the cake is done, of course."

Aerith laughed, then shifted her eyes back to Prompto. "Well, it's been fun, but I don't think a job as a centerpiece is in my future. Thanks for the opportunity, Prompto, but I'm giving my two seconds' notice." And with that, she rolled suddenly to the side, and both Noct and Gladio jumped as she fell into their laps—entrusting Gladio with her legs and Noct with her torso.

"Uh… hi, Aerith," said Noct, his hands hovering awkwardly above the table. Prompto didn't blame him. Resting them anywhere on Aerith's body in this position would feel strange for more than just him.

"Your Highness," greeted Aerith, reaching up to poke the tip of Noct's nose, and Prompto struggled not to laugh at Zack and Cloud's disarmed expressions. They must only have seen her hand, stretching up from nothingness to prod the prince. "No offense, but somehow, I thought the prince's lap would feel more luxurious. You're not very comfortable." She paused. "Though maybe this  _is_ luxury, if that's your wallet I'm lying on. Huh."

Reno snickered, and Noct's ears turned pink. "Yeah, that's my wallet." He pointed at Reno. "Say anything and I'll have you deported."

That gave Prompto an idea. Tutting, he shook his head slowly as if in disapproval. "For shame, Noct. What would Lady Lunafreya say?"

Noct's blush spread, and he fixed his gaze on the ceiling, but said nothing. Zack, meanwhile, leaned forward with clear interest. That's right; he and Cloud had heard about Noct and Lunafreya's relationship exactly once, and only as the Chosen King and the Oracle. "Ooh, does someone have a _lady_?"

"Yeah, since they were kids," said Prompto, grinning outright. "It's just a matter of time before they tie the knot. We've been expecting an official announcement every day since Noct turned twenty."

"Come on, would that even be allowed?" protested Noct. "Tenebrae's a part of the Empire now. There's no way they'd marry off the Oracle to the crown prince of an enemy nation." He sounded just sad enough that Prompto felt momentarily sorry for teasing him like that, and opened his mouth to apologize, but Reno spoke before he could, and he realized Noct had been glancing at him sideways.

"Hey, don't look at me," said Reno, holding up his hands in half a shrug of mock surrender. "I was just a kid during the Tenebrae campaign, and I don't care about political shit. If I could get you two hitched, I would, as long as you hooked me up with someone too." He put his hands behind his head and tilted his chair back, kicking his feet up on the table. "Preferably someone with low standards and no expectations, who likes fun with no strings attached."

"Gross," said Zack, grimacing. "Keep it to yourself, man."

Prompto would have expected Aerith to agree, but she was staring at the ceiling through faraway eyes, preoccupied again, as though something troubling had just occurred to her. That meant she needed another distraction. "Hey, Noct, I have an idea," said Prompto, smirking mischievously in preparation to resurrect one of their first arguments. "Why don't you just marry Aerith?"

Sure enough, that got her attention, and she scowled, but Noct responded first. "Why don't  _you_?" he demanded, flaring up half-jokingly as Aerith pushed herself upright to sit sideways on his lap. He didn't so much as stir, apparently having forgotten about the proximity that had caused Prompto to tease them in the first place. "You're of age now, too, buddy. Chop chop."

"She's like my sister!" exclaimed Prompto in his usual rebuttal, and tried not to smile.

"Mine too!" shot back Noct in his traditional response, but the corners of his mouth were turned up. Zack chuckled, looking wistful. It seemed he had enough sense to avoid openly joking about something as serious as marriage, but Prompto got the feeling he'd volunteer for Aerith's hand himself if he didn't think he'd ruin his chances.

Gladio groaned, rubbing his forehead in one hand. "Just to let you know, this doesn't get any less old the millionth time you bring it up," he said, getting to his feet. "I'm gonna order some dinner, because a little bird told me the birthday boy's been craving Galahdian chow lately." He took out his phone and started walking away. "Aerith, you can take my seat."

Aerith did so almost as soon as it was empty, then leaned forward with hands clasped and cleared her throat as though heading some sort of board meeting. "Just for the record, I'm not going to marry either one of you," she announced, looking between Noct and Prompto, both of whom feigned shock and dismay. "You already know that. You've known it for years. Why do you even bother having that debate, except to annoy everyone?"

"Seriously," agreed Reno nonchalantly. "It's like watching two people who aren't hungry argue over who gets the leftovers."

" _Excuse_ you," retorted Zack indignantly. "If Aerith was a food, she'd be an artisan strawberry parfait _,_ not just any old leftovers." Everyone at the table, including Aerith, stared at Zack as he spoke, and Prompto could practically hear everyone's thoughts take the same turn. His answer had been quick enough that it almost sounded as though he'd thought about it before.

Reno was the first to break the silence, bursting into peals of snickering laughter as obnoxious as his personality. "Oh, the places I could go with that," he chortled, sweeping his legs back off the table and getting to his feet. "And I _would_ go places with that, if it wasn't a certain someone's birthday. That's my gift. You're welcome, kid." He saluted Prompto with such flippancy it looked almost like a rude gesture.

"Thanks, I guess?" was the only response Prompto could muster, mostly because he was distracted by the fact that Aerith looked disappointed that Reno wouldn't be voicing his thoughts.

"Anyway, birthday boy," continued Reno, slinking back over to the refreshments, "do you mind if I let Rude in? It's getting pretty cold out there, and I heard there was a chance of rain tonight."

Prompto's stomach flipped, all the questions he had suppressed rising to the forefront again. "Rude's here, too?"

"Of course he's here," said Reno through his mouthful of food, as though it should be obvious. "Where else would he be?"

"I don't know, maybe in jail?" asked Noct, sounding as frustrated as Prompto felt. "Don't think I forgot you never told us why you're here." There was a very slim chance that anyone could have escaped the Kingsglaive. Even if they somehow had, they should be hightailing it back to the Empire instead of sticking around like this. And if their presence among Crownsguard members was sanctioned—if they'd been released for some reason—that reason was incredibly important.

"Maybe we _will_ tell you if we're both here to talk," said Reno, then swallowed, his eyes flicking back to Prompto. "What do you say, Pronto?"

Prompto took a deep breath as everyone turned to him expectantly. Not that he'd ever specifically doubted it, but there was no question now: this must have been what Aerith meant when she was talking about trust. And that meant her instinct was to trust these people, despite all rational evidence to the contrary. There were a million reasons not to trust the Turks, but Aerith's word was good enough for him.

Besides that, Prompto got the feeling that he wasn't going to be able to fully relax and enjoy himself even if he did leave Rude outside. And wouldn't it be better to have everyone in the same place at the same time?  _So we can all catch up sooner rather than later_. Prompto hadn't wanted to have such an enormous conversation on his birthday, but one way or another, the stars had all aligned. There really was no time like the present.

"Call me by my real name and it's a deal," said Prompto finally, holding out his hand. "Prompto."

But Noct took his wrist. "Are you _crazy_?" he hissed, staring at him, and Cloud looked no less stricken. "They're Niffs!"

"It's my birthday and I'll invite some enemies of the state if I want to," said Prompto, raising his hand again, and met Noct's eyes in the hopes that he would understand. Everyone here had different pieces of information, some more than others, so they might learn something useful if they put them together. Besides that, even if it'd be hell to explain the presence of a second Turk to Ignis and Gladio, they had two members of the Crownsguard to back them up if things got too real—and it didn't hurt to have a SOLDIER and a soldier on their side, either.

After holding his gaze for a few seconds, Noct gave a tiny nod of resignation, and Reno finally shook Prompto's hand. "Thanks, Prompto," he said, sauntering to the door, and Prompto got the feeling he'd never hear those exact words from him again. And, opening the door, Reno called another such phrase into the twilight: "Olly olly oxen free!"

Almost as soon as the nonsense words left Reno's mouth, Rude swung down from the awning, and Aerith jumped at the heavy sound of his landing. The porch seemed almost too small for his large frame, especially as he was holding something.

Zack and Cloud must have seen it too, because they got to their feet warily, but as Rude passed through the door, Prompto realized that the thing he was carrying was a bottle of champagne. "I heard somebody was coming of age today," he explained, as taciturn as ever, and Prompto couldn't suppress the beginnings of a smile. The mental image of a special operative wearing sunglasses at night, crouched on an awning with a bottle of champagne, was too good.

Maybe inviting the Turks wouldn't ruin Prompto's birthday after all.


End file.
